The Gift
by Juxapose4ever
Summary: A story about a man who finds out he is a father of a child. But the problem is that he is a virgin, and far too young to be that child's father. Where did this child come from, and how is she related to him?
1. Chapter 1

Harvest Moon: The Gift

**Chapter 1**

_Winter 24, 2002_

In a small village resting in a valley, a small group of people lives peacefully far away from the city life. Each villager of the small community known as Forget-Me-Not Valley had a reasons for moving to such a remote and quiet place. Most of them lost a member of their family. Others wished to start their lives over from scratch. And the rest only wish to finally know what peace was compared to the hectic lifestyle of the city life.

A young man named Yuki lives in this small village of Forget-Me-Not Valley. About three years ago, Yuki's father died while working on his farm. Yuki decided to take over his father's farm to live his life peacefully. Several years before the passing of his father, he also lost his mother due to an illness. He had no other living relatives, so he lived alone for a long time. Even so, he is a fairly happy person.

Five young and beautiful girls also lives in Forget-Me-Not valley. Celia, a quiet brunette that worked in a farm close to Yuki's. Muffy, a flirtatious blond barmaid who constantly wishes to be married. Nami, a red headed traveler looking for a home. Lumina, a brunette pianist who lives in a huge mansion. And Flora, an archaeologist full of dreams and hope. What does each of these girls have in common? They all have a huge crush on Yuki!

Besides the other local villagers, there is one other woman who lives in the shadows of Forget-Me-Not Valley. A woman with dirty blond hair that lives in a small hut next to a mansion where Lumina lived. Unlike the rest of the villagers, this girl wears an odd cape and shoes made of animal skins, a purple tunic that has been out of fashion for centuries, and her garments were decorated with pouches and bones. Even though she is quite unique, only one person in the valley knew that she lives there.

This odd woman who lives in a small hut with nothing but books, and a cauldron was only known as the Witch Princess. She spends her days hiding away in the hut, and she only leaves at night collecting herbs and grasses to eat. As the name implies, the Witch Princess studies a special form of science known as Alchemy, best known as magic. One of the Witch Princess' main hobbies is giving people a hard time using her magic from inside her hut. She typically is not a happy person, and she becomes upset when she sees happy people.

On Christmas Eve, the Witch Princess looks back at all the misery that she has brought to the valley over the past year. She waves her arms over her crystal ball, and stares into it. In the ball, she could see the many tragic events that she herself created using her black magic. Without guilt or shame, the Witch Princess smiles with pride for the things that she had done.

**"Poor harvest, heart break, illnesses, sadness, loneliness. I love it when I see someone suffer from my magic. It gives me the feeling that I've accomplished something. These guinea pigs run to Forget-Me-Not Valley to forget their problems, but they don't realize that they're only falling into my spider web."** As the images fade one by one, the mood of the Witch Princess changes from jolly to aggravated when she sees the face of the local farmer of Forget-Me-Not Valley. **"It's him! The only person in the valley that I cannot make unhappy! Yuki!"**

Out of frustration, the Witch Princess paces around the hut thinking about what she has done in the past to make Yuki unhappy. **"I don't get it! Nothing seems to get that man down! I've ruined his harvest countless times, but he fixes them easily. I made his animals sick, he treats them. I made him sick, the other women makes him feel better. He's single and alone, but he seems pretty happy that way."** She slams her left fist against her right palm, the more she thought about it, the angrier she felt. **"For pete's sake, his father died in that farm!! You would think that working on that farm would make him sad, but no! He's too happy and proud."**

After pacing around the hut, she checks the time, it is now 9:30 PM. The Witch Princess stretches her arms, and yawns. **"All this brooding has made me very tired. I don't need to go out herb gathering tonight, so I think I'll sleep early tonight."**

The Witch Princess takes off her cape, and throws it on a nearby chair. After taking off her shoes, she throws herself on her bed, and closes her eyes. It wasn't long until loud music wakes her up again. She covered her ears as she yelled, **"What the hell? Why is the mansion playing that racket in the middle of the night!?"** She jumps out of bed, and checks the calendar. She slaps herself in the forehead after realizing the date. **"Oh damn, I forgot. It's Christmas Eve. They're having their annual Christmas party in Romana's Mansion. Such a pointless holiday, these people are not even Christians. No wonder I've been in a bad mood all day, people are unusually happy and jolly during the holiday season. And I bet _'that man'_ is with them too."**

Seeing that sleeping is pointless, she grabs her cape and shoes, and puts them back on. After getting dressed, she snapped her fingers and teleports herself outside the hut. The air is cold, and the roads are covered in three inches of snow, but she is able to manage. She sneaks up to a nearby window to spy on what were the locals doing. Inside the mansion, the villagers of Forget-Me-Not Valley were all having fun celebrating Christmas with their friends. All the happy faces made the Witch Princess feel even more annoyed than before. **"Well, it looks like everyone is having fun tonight."** said the Witch Princess as she clenches her fist as tightly as possible. She notices Yuki sitting in the couch surrounded by the five single women. They all were telling jokes, and laughing cheerfully. **"I bet that guy is the ring leader of this merry party. Before he came around, people were never this happy and cheerful."**

The Witch Princess could no longer control her anger, so she steps away from the window, and started stamping her feet in anger against the snow. **"That's it! I've had it with that guy! I swear I'm going to make him the most miserable and unhappy person in the valley. But how. . ."**

The Witch Princess returns to the window. Yuki walks away to the kitchen to deliver some empty dishes. After a moment, the girls starts to act a bit strange. Lumina, the brunette pianist was being pushed into the kitchen by the other four girls. Behind her back was a small box with white wrapping, and a red ribbon. The Witch Princess becomes curious, and decides to see what is going on.

She snaps her fingers, and teleports herself in the kitchen. She saw Yuki, so she hid behind the refrigerator. He places the dishes in the sink neatly, Then Lumina walks in obviously nervous. They both greet each other casually, then she pulls out the gift from behind her back, and presents it to him.

**"Here you go Yuki, it's a Christmas present!"** said Lumina in a shy and bashful manner. Yuki accepts her gift, and opens it quickly. He smiles as he pulls out several pieces of chocolate out of the box.

**"Wow, it's a box of gourmet chocolates! Thank you very much Lumina!"** shouted Yuki cheerfully. The Witch Princess became quite interested in his love for chocolates.

As Yuki eats some of the chocolates in the gift box, Lumina stares at the floor and blushes. **"Umm. . . Yuki? It's been three years since you came to live in Forget-Me-Not Valley. I was wondering. . . If we could. . . You know. . . Go out on a date sometime."**

Yuki stops eating his chocolates, and sighs. **"Lumina, I think you're a great girl and everything. But, I'm not ready to be in a relationship yet. I'm sorry."**

Lumina looks up into Yuki's eyes, and smiles. **"I understand. But if you ever change your mind, I'll be waiting."** Lumina takes a step back, and says, **"The others are probably waiting for me. I should be heading back now. Oh! Muffy said that if you could get the bottle of wine out for everyone. It's in the top right cabinet."**

Lumina then leaves the kitchen, and returns to the main hall where everyone is partying. The Witch Princess teleports herself into the main hall, hiding behind some plants. Lumina Joins Muffy, Celia, Nami, and Flora in the party. By the disappointed look in Lumina's face, they all knew what happened.

**"Let me guess, he turned you down, didn't he?"** asked Celia. Lumina nods.

**"Don't let it get you down!"** yelled Flora. **"That guy turns everyone down."**

**"The rest of us must have been turned down at least twice already. Join the club!"** admits Muffy while drinking a glass of wine.

**"Yeah, Muffy was turned down about thirteen times already!"** commented Nami while drinking a mug of beer.

**"Who asked you to count!?"** cried Muffy pointing a finger at Nami.

**"Hey, don't get upset at me."** said Nami. **"But I do wonder about him. Three years has passed since he came to live here. But he still wants to stay single. Sometimes I wonder if he roots for the same team."**

**"Of course not."** said Muffy full of confidence. **"He's just being stubborn, that's all. Sooner or later his male hormones will kick in. He'll start to feel lonely, that's when he'll fall for my trap. Just you wait Yuki, I'll make you mine soon enough!"**

**"You sound pretty cocky for a 29 year old woman who still isn't married yet!"** said Nami. Muffy normally becomes upset at comments like that, but since they were partying, everyone laughs instead.

After overhearing their conversation, the Witch Princess Vanishes from the Mansion. She teleports herself into Yuki's house looking for a plan. **"There has to be something here that I can use to bring down that farmer. No human chooses to remain single without a really good reason."**

The Witch Princess walks into his bedroom, and notices a notebook on a small table next to his bed. She quickly grabs it, and starts flipping through the pages looking for answers. She stops at an early entry where Muffy first confessed her feelings to Yuki about two years ago. Yuki wrote his deepest and most personal thoughts about why he decided to remain single on that page. She sneers, then closes the diary, and places it back where she found it.

**"How careless. Leaving your diary out for the whole world to see. I shall finally make you suffer Yuki, just you wait!"** The Witch Princess laughs, then vanishes from Yuki's house. She returns to her hut where she starts to scan through the library looking for a specific book. Moments later, she grabs a book titled _"Human Alchemy"_. She flips through the pages until she finds what she's looking for.

**"Perfect! I knew he would have written the recipe in this book. Now to collect the ingredients, and prepare the ritual!"**

Several Hours later, Yuki finally arrives at his house. He throws himself on his bed, and checks the time, it is now 11:49 PM.

**"Wow, that party was a lot of fun. But I need to wake up pretty early tomorrow. Even a farmer can't take off on Christmas day."** Yuki takes off his blue hat, and throws the covers over himself. Within seconds, he falls asleep.

As Yuki sleeps, the Witch Princess suddenly appears in his house again. This time, she has a pair of shears in her hand. She slowly walks up to Yuki so that she doesn't wake him. Then she grabs a lock of his hair, and snips it off his head quietly. Finally she pulls a tiny glass vial from her pocket, and puts Yuki's hair inside. She smiled as she vanishes back into her hut.

All the preparations were already made in the hut. The Witch Princess uses chalk to draw a huge circle with a pentagram. She then placed a pot of boiling water in the middle of the star shaped pentagram. She grabs all the ingredients from a nearby table, and starts to pour them in one by one.

**"Let's see. . . 65 water, 24 carbon, 8 lime, 2 phosphorus, 1 salt, and a hint of sulfur, iron, fluorine, and silicone. The basic building blocks of the human body."** The Witch Princess pulls out the small vial with Yuki's hair in it. **"Now for the final ingredient, some D.N.A."**

She drops the vial into the mixture. Holding the book in her left hand, she stretches her right hand over the mixture, and read the words written in an ancient language out loud. The pentagram shines brightly, and a chemical reaction occurs in the pot. There is a faint green glow after the reaction was done. Finally, the Witch Princess grabs a pair of tongs, and pulls out a small amber colored crystal from the pot. She smiles when she realizes that her spell actually worked.

She picks up the small pot carrying the glowing green liquid, and held it over her head. **"It's time for the final step of my genius plan. Yuki, you will regret the day you arrived at Forget-Me-Not Valley!"** She laughs as hard as she could. She is about to give Yuki a Christmas present he would never forget.

_Spring 5, 2003_

New Years had already passed, Yuki is now praying over a small grave where his father rests in peace. He left out a few sticks of incense on the grave stone as he prayed. He opens his eyes as he says, **"Father, it's been three years since you've passed on to the next life. The farm is doing well these days, so there's no need for you to worry about anything. Please rest well, and take care of mom in heaven."**

After he's done praying, he grabs his rucksack, and turns around to go back to the farm. But on the way to the farm, he found a child who stood behind him as he prayed. The little girl wore a Sunday hat that hid her face from Yuki's view. She had a yellow frilly dress with thin orange stripes that crossed in a plaid-like pattern, cream pants, and matching orange/cream sneakers. Yuki has never seen this girl before, the only other girls around her age were Kate who lived close to his farm, and May from Mineral Town.

Yuki walked up to her, and said, **"Hey there, are you lost? Do you live here? Where are your parents?"**

The little girl looked up into Yuki's eyes. He was shocked as soon as he saw the girl's face. The little girl resembles his mother that passed away many years ago from an illness. She had large brown eyes, light brown thin straight hair, and smooth cheekbones. The same features Yuki inherited from his mother. Yuki was mesmerized at how much she resembled his mother.

The little girl smiled, and yelled, **"Daddy?!"**

Hearing that word come out of her mouth sent a rush of panic through Yuki's spine. He took a few steps back, and asked, **"W-W-What did you call me?"**

The little girl's face beamed cheerfully. She ran to Yuki, and hugged him tightly. **"Daddy, I've found you!"**

Yuki did not believe what this girl just told him. He knows that he has no children, but this girl claims to be his child. Without thinking, he takes her to the farm where he could ask her some questions. Yuki and the child sits in the living room table. He stares at the child as she helps herself to some lemonade. Trying to make sense out of the situation, he sighs and starts the interrogation.

**"So, let me get this straight. You're name is Choco, you're 10 years old, and I'm supposed to be your father?"** Choco nods. Yuki clears his throat, and tries his hardest to explain the situation to her. **"Listen to me Choco, Umm. . . I think there is some sort of mistake. I just turned 22 years old today. You are just too old to be my daughter. In fact, you are old enough to be my younger sister!"**

Choco shakes her head no. **"You are definitely my daddy."**

Yuki places his hand on his forehead, and tries to think. **"Okay, listen to me. I'm not sure if they've taught you the whole deal with the birds and the bees in school yet, but let me tell you something. In order for a man and a woman to have children, they need to do _'stuff'_ with one another. The thing is that I've never done anything with a woman yet, so there's no possible way I could have any children. In other words, I'm a virgin. Do you understand?"**

**"But daddy, we used to go to the park together with mommy all the time. We used to sit by the tree, and eat cake together. Don't you remember?"**

Yuki sits there with a confused look on his face. He knows for a fact that an event like that has never happened to him before. He lets out another sigh, and said, **"I tell you what, why don't you tell me who your mother is? I would like to ask her a few questions."**

She stares into space thinking about an answer, she remains silent for several minutes. Yuki stares at her with a bead of sweat on his temple. Choco finally answers, **"Umm. . . I don't remember who mommy is. But I do remember my daddy's face!"**

Yuki suddenly busts a blood vessel. He stands up quickly, and yells to the top of his lungs, **"STOP SCREWING AROUND WITH ME KID!!!"**

Suddenly, tears start to develop in Choco's eyes. Her lower lip trembles, she clutches her fists, and then she cries as hard as she possibly could. The crying is so loud, that it pierces Yuki's ears, not even covering them with his hands were helping.

**"Hey, hey, stop crying! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell, I was just upset!"** Yelled Yuki trying his best to calm the wailing child.

**"But daddy, you really scared me!"** She whimpers a bit more before saying, **"I wanted to see you again, but you're already yelling at me!"** Then she continues to cry as loud as possible.

Yuki couldn't stand the crying anymore, so he runs to the kitchen to look for something to give her. **"Let's see, kids love candy. Maybe if I give her some, she'll stop crying."** he thought as he searches his cupboards. Soon enough he found his stash of chocolates. He grabbed a chocolate bar, and ran back to the frantic little girl.

**"Hey Choco, you want some chocolate?! I'll give you some if you stop crying!"** said Yuki trying to yell over her crying. Choco opened her eyes, and she stops crying as soon as she saw the chocolate bar in his hand. She snatches it, and eats it cheerfully. Yuki is falls on his chair in relief now that the crying has stopped before she breaks a window.

**"Okay, let's start over."** Yuki clears his throat before he continues with the questions. **"If you don't know who's your mother, how did you get here?"**

**"I got here all by myself, I'm a big girl now!"**

**"Okay. . . I can't believe they let a child ride the boat all by themselves these days. Anyways, where were you born?"** asked Yuki.

**"I was born in the city of Atland!"**

Yuki lost his breath when he heard her say that. **"That's my hometown, no way, could she really be. . ."** thought Yuki. He then slaps himself a few times after realizing the situation. **"Get a hold of yourself Yuki. This must be some sort of coincidence. There is no way that this kid is your daughter. Keep it together, we'll figure something out."**

Yuki clears his throat once again, **"Okay, when were you born?"**

**"Winter 25th!"** Choco announced.

**"You were born on the same day as Christmas? You're some gift. . ."** Yuki dropped his head on the table, and thought for a minute.

**"Daddy, are you OK? Do you want some chocolate?"** asked Choco.

**"No, I just have a headache. But more importantly, what am I going to do about you?"**

**"Can't I stay with you?"**

**"Absolutely not! If anyone finds out about you, things are going to turn ugly."**

Suddenly, the front door bursts open, and the entire village marches in yelling, **"HAPPY BIRTHDAY YUKI!!!"**

Everyone expected Yuki to be very surprised. But instead, they find him trembling in fear. They also noticed Choco sitting on the other side of the table. Muffy runs to Choco cheerfully, and picks her up. She then hugs her like a child hugs a doll.

**"Oh. . . My. . .God! You are just soooo cute!"** Yelled Muffy. rubbing her cheeck against Choco's. **"You're so soft and cuddly, I could just eat you up!"**

Everyone stares at Muffy enbracing Choco, while Yuki tries his hardest not to wet himself. Nami finally asks the question Yuki fears the most, **"So, who's the kid? You're little sister?"**

**"Well. . . You see. . . Umm. . . It's kind of hard to explain. . ."** said Yuki trying hard to find the right words.

**"He's my daddy!"** yelled Choco. The entire village was speechless. They all stare at Yuki with the most odd glare he had ever seen before.

_To be continued._


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

_Spring 5, 2003 (Continued from Chapter 1)_

The entire Forget-Me-Not population stood in Yuki's house staring oddly at him after Choco declared that she is Yuki's daughter. The Witch Princess sits from inside the hut watching the events unfold through her crystal ball. Yuki stands still trying his best to come up with a proper explanation for what's going on.

**"Yuki, she just said you were her father! What's going on!?"** cried Lumina breaking the silence.

**"Are you hiding something from us?"** asked Takakura who lives next door.

**"Of course not!"** yelled Yuki in a panic. **"Don't believe what she says, she's crazy!"**

**"But daddy. . . That's so mean. . ."** whined Choco who was still being carried by Muffy.

Muffy places Choco on the floor, and walks up to Yuki. She then grabs a pinchful of Yuki's hair, and rips it from his head. **"OWW!!! What was that for Muffy!?"** complained Yuki. She ignores him, and walks back to Choco with the hair sample. She lightly grabs Choco's short ponytail, and starts to compare Yuki's hair with Choco's.

**"It's the same. The color, texture, and density is exactly the same."** Muffy then places her hand on Choco's cheeks, and looks at her directly in the eyes. **"She has your eyes, and her cheek bones feels the same yours. If this is not your child, this is some odd coincidence."**

**"Oh come on!"** complained Yuki. **"How can you even believe that this is my daughter? Can't you tell that she's too old? I would have to be like 12 years old when she was born!"**

**"Well, some people do mature rather quickly."** said Flora. Everyone nods in agreement.

**"And even though teenage parents are uncommon, it still does happen."** said Nami. Everyone nods in agreement twice.

**"How can you all say that! Care to explain how do I have children if I'm a virgin!?"** Everyone leers awkwardly at Yuki. **"Oh, you think I've been lying then?"** Everyone nods once again. **"For what reason do I have to lie to everyone?"** Everyone turns their gaze at Choco. From how they are acting, Yuki feels that the other villagers think that he knew that he was a father, but he had been hiding it from all of them the whole time he lived in Forget-Me-Not Valley.

Yuki became frustrated, so he grabbed Choco's arm, and they left the farm together. All the other villagers followed him curiously. **"Where are we going daddy?"** asked Choco.

**"Stop calling me that. We are going to Doctor Hardy's office to have a paternity test. We will prove once and for all if you are my child or not!"**

Everyone arrives at the doctor's office, and Yuki explains the situation to Hardy. After hearing the whole story, Doctor Hardy takes a blood sample from both Yuki and Choco, and then leaves to run the paternity test. Everyone waits for hours, but they all refuse to leave until they got an answer. As Yuki waits, he feels that all the villagers were staring at him. He could hear the others saying, **"I can't believe he's a father." "How could he not know that he has a daughter somewhere?" "I wonder who's the mother?" "And all this time, I thought he was a pure soul." "What an animal."**

Everyone quiets down once Doctor Hardy returned with the results in his hands. He sat on his desk looking at Yuki directly in the eye. He opens up the folder, and starts to read the results out loud.

**"Sorry about the long wait. But considering that I don't have the proper equipment to perform the test here, I had to travel all the way to Mineral Town to get the results. Please note that these tests are 99.8 accurate, so if the results are not to your liking-"**

**"Get on with it!!"** yelled Yuki.

**"All right fine."** Doctor Hardy clears his throat, and says, **"According to the test result, you are indeed Choco's father."**

**"See, what did I tell you! I'm-"** Yuki was sure that the test would come out negative, so he had his _"I told you so"_ speech ready. It takes him a few seconds to realize that the test came out positive. **"What did you say?"** Yuki asked nervously.

Doctor Hardy passes Yuki the test results and says,** "Half your DNA matches Choco. Go ahead and read it for yourself."**

Yuki snatches the folder with the test results, and just like the doctor said, he is Choco's father. **"But that's impossible! How can I be her father? I'm not old enough to have a 10-year old daughter!"**

**"Well, you probably had a lustful evening with the babysitter when you were younger."** said Doctor Hardy.

**"An event like that never happened! Besides, I am still a virgin! Care to explain how can virgins have children?"**

Doctor Hardy stares at Yuki. Then he takes a look at Choco, and says, **"Even though you say that, she's right there. Children do not come out of thin air, you know."**

Yuki rubs his head trying to relieve an instant headache. After taking a deep sigh, he tells the doctor,** "Well then please explain this:"** Yuki turns to Choco, and tells her, **"Choco, please tell the doctor who is your mother."**

Everyone waits patiently for an answer. Choco tries her best to remember who is her mother, but she cannot come up with an answer. **"I. . . I don't know. I don't remember who mommy is."**

Everyone is confused by her answer. After mumbling to one another for a moment, the Doctor decides to ask her some questions. **"Did you used to live with your mother?"** Choco nods. **"How long ago?"** She shakes her head leaving the impression that she doesn't remember. **"What can you tell us about you mother? Anything would be fine."**

Choco looks down. Trying to think about her mother so hard made her feel sad, and tears were starting to develop in her eyes. **"I. . . I can't remember anything about mommy. I just came here to see my daddy. I haven't seen him in such a long time, I was happy when I finally found him. But daddy doesn't remember me or mommy."**

All the villagers start to feel sad over Choco's story. Ignoring all the odd details of the situation, everyone leers angrily at Yuki. **"What? Why is everyone looking at me like that?"** asked Yuki.

Muffy walks up to him, and grabs him by the collar. **"Now listen to me! I really don't care whether you remember having kids or not! The only thing I know is that she's here now!"**

**"But. . ."** whined Yuki.

**"No buts!"** yelled Muffy. **"You are going to take care of this child like a good father. Am I making myself clear!?"**

Yuki looks around, he notices that the rest of the village feels the same way as Muffy did. Yuki doesn't want to accept responsibility of a child that shouldn't belong to him, but he has no choice in the matter. Either he accepts responsibility, or the villagers may not forgive him.

**"Okay, fine. I'll take care of Choco. But if I can find proof that she really isn't my daughter, I'll send her back to where she came from. Fair enough?"**

Everybody nods, but they all are sure that it is clearly impossible to prove that Choco is not Yuki's child. After everything is agreed on, everyone goes back to their daily routine forgetting about Yuki's 22nd birthday. The Witch Princess jumps around with joy as she sees her plan was a success.

"**Haha! Look at Yuki. I have never seen him this frustrated before. I bet it must be a pain taking care of a child at your age. But don't worry, this aggravation is only beginning. And then later on, the real torment will begin!"**

To be Continued.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

_Spring 6, 2003_

After completing his daily work, Yuki walks into his home. As he opens the door, he sees Choco standing inside smiling at him. Yuki just stood there for a good minute staring at her in confusion. The way Choco stared at him gave Yuki a chill down his spine.

**"Hi daddy!"** yelled Choco.

**"Hi there."** said Yuki with a slight nervous tone of voice. **"Why are you just standing there like that? Shouldn't you be-"**

**"Hi daddy!"** yelled another voice that did not belong to Choco. Yuki turns around, and faces the direction where the second childish voice came from. Behind him, stands another child about 10 years old. This child was a boy.

**"Daddy is so funny!"** said yet another voice coming from his left side. He turns his head to find another little girl with short hair.

From his right, he felt another child pull on his shirt. He turns his face to the next child, and sees another boy. **"Daddy, I'm hungry! Where's dinner!?"** said the boy to his right.

One by one, children were appearing in Yuki's farm. They all had large brown eyes, light brown thin straight hair, and smooth cheekbones, just like Yuki does. Within minutes, the whole farm was littered with hundreds of children all claiming that Yuki is their father. Yuki panics as he is pinned in a corner inside his house facing an army of little boys and girls all within the age of 5 and 15. They all smile as they say, **"Please take care of us daddy!"**

Yuki yells to the top of his lungs as he jerks up from his bed. After taking several deep breaths, Yuki realizes that the whole event was just a bad dream. He sits up on his bed, and laughs as he says, **"The whole thing was just a dream! Everything that happened yesterday was only a figment of my wild imagination. I don't have any kids, I'm just a single virgin who lives by himself."**

**"Daddy?"** said Choco who woke up as soon as she heard her father yell. Yuki jumps up, and falls off his bed in shock. Choco looks down at Yuki as she says, **"Daddy, are you OK? Did you have a bad dream?"**

**"Ch. . . Ch. . . Choco! Why on earth were you sleeping on my bed?"** asked Yuki.

**"There is only one bed in this house. Where else am I supposed to sleep?"**

**"Oh, yeah. I forgot."** said Yuki as he stands up with a massive pain on his back that he got from falling.

Yuki walks out of his bedroom with a tired look on his face. He checks the clock, and notices that it was 8:00 AM. Two hours later than he normally wakes up. He rubs his head in disbelief as he walks to the bathroom where he could wash his face. Choco follows him into the bathroom where she could also wash up for the day.

After Yuki washed his face, he took his tooth bush and started brushing his teeth. Yuki has an odd and unique method when he brushes his teeth. When he stares into the mirror, he makes a very serious face, and sweeps his teeth from side to side. After Choco dried off her face, she grabs Yuki's spare tooth brush, and starts brushing her own teeth. Yuki was about to tell her not to use his spare, but he became speechless at what he saw. Choco was also brushing her teeth in the same exact manner as Yuki always had. As she stares into the mirror, she makes a very serious face, and sweeps her teeth from side to side. Even after Yuki pauses, she continues to brush her teeth in that manner. The way she brushes is not an imitation, rather it seems to Yuki that she has been brushing this way for a long time.

**"No way! She brushes the same exact way that I do."** thought Yuki. **"Could it be possible that she really is. . ."** He then slaps himself in the cheek, **"What am I thinking? This may be just a coincidence. Keep it together Yuki, you'll find out the truth soon enough!"**

After they've freshened themselves up, Yuki heads over to his telephone and starts dialing a number from Mineral Town. A gruff and grouchy man answers the phone, he was not pleased that Yuki called at such an early hour. **"Hello, Gotz! It's me, Yuki from the Forget-Me-Not Valley Farm. . . Yes, I know it's early, but I have a job for you. . . I need another bedroom built in my house. . . Three days? Yes, that's fine. . . How much? . . . Okay fine, I got it. . . What do I need an extra bedroom for? Mind your own business, and just do the job!"** Yuki hangs up the phone, and thinks for a moment. **"Damn, this will cost me a fortune! But it has to be done if she's going to be staying here or a while."**

Yuki heads over to his room, and starts packing some things. Choco follows him, and got curious about what he was doing. **"Daddy, what's going on? Where are you going?"**

**"We are going to stay at the inn for a couple of nights. A man will come today, and make a bedroom for you to sleep in. But he needs to do his work in peace, so we're going to leave the house in his care."** Yuki zips up his backpack full of clothing, and takes Choco to the inn. Since she never brought any possessions with her, there was nothing to pack for her.

After checking in, Yuki decides to have breakfast at the inn. Ruby, the owner of the inn brings out some pancakes for them to enjoy, along with some maple and chocolate syrup. Yuki always enjoy his pancakes with chocolate syrup rather than maple. But when he reaches out to grab the bottle of chocolate syrup, Choco had already grabbed it and started using it on her own stack. Yuki became stunned by this discovery.

**"She eats pancakes the same way I do too?"** thought Yuki. **"I thought that she likes chocolate because she was a kid. But she's a chocolate lover too? This can't be! How can she have the same likes and habits that I do?"**

After breakfast, Yuki and Choco headed over to their room. Choco bounced on her bed playfully, while Yuki prepared all his tools. He checked his clock, it was already 10:00 AM. He usually starts working on the farm at 7:00 AM, and takes it easy for the rest of the day. After he was fully prepared to work, he puts on his rucksack, and starts to leave. Choco ran up to him, and grabbed his shirt.

**"Daddy, where are you going?"** asked Choco.

**"Where do you think? I need to go back to the farm, and take care of the animals and crops. I'm not on vacation you know."**

**"But Daddy. . . If you go, I'll be so bored. . ."** complained Choco

**"Just be a good girl, and wait here. I'll be back later."**

Yuki then leaves Choco by herself in the room. She takes a deep sigh, and looks around. There isn't anything in the room other than a few beds and some furniture, nothing to keep a ten year old child entertained for the day. She sat on the bed playing with her fingers and toes waiting patiently for her father to return. But no matter how hard she tries, she ends up getting bored to tears anyway. After waiting for four hours, Choco fell asleep on the bed until Yuki returns. It was 6:00 PM when Yuki finally arrives at the inn, Choco wakes up and jumps out of bed to give Yuki a big hug.

**"Daddy, you're finally back! I'm glad, I was so bored! Now you can play with me!"**

**"Sorry, I can't." said Yuki. "I'm too tired and dirty to play right now."**

Choco tilts her head down, and makes little whining sounds. Yuki goes over to his backpack, and starts pulling out two bowls, and some toiletries. In each bowl, he adds one bar of soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, towel, shampoo, and conditioner. He then hands one of he bowl to Choco.

**"Come on, let's go take a bath."** said Yuki.

Choco hums a happy tune as they walk over to the bathing rooms. The inn has their own bath tubs for the guests to use freely. They are much similar to Japanese public baths, but much smaller. Yuki walks into the men's bathing room, and sighs in relief.

**"Umm. . .Yuki. . ."** said Rock, the son of the owners of the inn.

**"Yes Rock. What's up?"**

Rock points at Choco who followed Yuki into the men's bath. She already started taking off her clothes to bathe. Yuki freaks out, and screams. He dresses Choco again, and pulls her out of the men's bathing room as quickly as he could.

**"Choco! What do you think you were doing!?"**

**"But I thought you said we're going to take a bath?"** asked Choco.

**"I didn't mean together! You're a girl! Go to the women's bath!"**

**"Aww, but I wanna take a bath with daddy!"**

**"I said no! And I mean no! You're old enough to bathe on your own!"**

Yuki's constant yelling was making Choco upset. Soon enough, tears were developing in her eyes, and she starts crying. All the other guests were coming out of their rooms to see what was going on. Yuki starts to feel embarrassed. So he tries to calm Choco down, but she couldn't hear him over her own crying. Yuki quickly runs back into his room, and grabs a chocolate bar. He goes back to Choco, and places the chocolate in her hands which quickly stops her crying.

**"Sorry about yelling, I was just a little upset. Now be a good girl, and go to the women's bath okay?"** said Yuki as he rubs Choco on the head. Choco nods, and went over to the women's bath right next to the men's bath.

Yuki went into the men's bath. After cleaning himself up, he sits in the warm bath to try and relax his nerves. It has only been less than 48 hours since Choco came to live with him, but he already feels stressed about having a child living with him. It wasn't long until Choco starts to beat against the wall that divides the men's bath from the women's bath.

**"Daddy! I'm bored! Will you please tell me a story?"** said Choco from the women's bath.

**"I'm trying to relax here! Why don't you talk to someone else who is in there?"** complained Yuki.

**"But nobody else is in here but this one guy."** said Choco.

"**Who are you calling a guy!?"** yelled Nami. **"I'm a woman!"**

Yuki turns red in embarrassment. All he could hear from the women's bath was Nami yelling about how chest size does not make her any less of a woman than any other girl. Even though he tried his best to relax, Choco and Nami discussing the difference between a man and a woman was making him feel uneasy.

_Spring 8, 2003_

The third day that Gotz is working on Yuki's house. Soon, Yuki can return to his home. So in the morning, Yuki packs his tools to work on the farm, and tries to leave. But Choco is not going to let him leave that easily. As he opens the door, Choco grabs his shirt, and tries to pull him back in.

**"Choco! What are you doing?! Let me go!"**

**"NO!"** yelled Choco. "**You always leave me here all alone! I get so bored when you're not here, so stay with me! You're gone all day, and I have nothing to do!"**

Yuki yanks his shirt away from her. Then he picks her up, and places her on the bed where he can have a serious talk with her. **"Now listen to me. I need to work every day to make money. Without money, I can't afford to live here in Forget-Me-Not Valley. If you want, I'll show you around the valley when I get back, and then you can find stuff to do on your own. Is that a deal?"**

Choco nods sadly. Yuki then grabs his tools again, and leaves. As he closes the door behind him, he sighs letting out a mountain of stress. He knows that he needs to work, but he feels bad about leaving her in the room all alone.

**"Hi there!"** yelled Van popping in at the scene, surprising Yuki who was lost in thought.

Van is a heavily obese salesman who travels between many villages buying and selling goods between them. Although fairly friendly, he does take advantage of any situation in order to make a living. Some people says he's a godsend. Others think he's a scam artist.

**"Van! I forgot that you come to the valley today."**

Van smiles as he says, **"A little birdie told me that you have a kid! Is this true?"**

**"Not sure."** said Yuki trying to figure out who's been gossiping over the phone.** "I am not 100 sure if the kid is mine or not."**

**"You look like you've been through a lot! Are you okay?"** said Van showing a false sense of sympathy.

**"She's always bored. She came here with no possessions other than the clothing on her back. She wants me to play with her 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It's too much for me to handle."**

**"I have just the thing for you!"** yelled Van taking advantage of Yuki's stress. He opens up his huge bag of random goods, and starts to pile stuff on Yuki's arms. **"We have a drawing pad for the little artists, crayons, a ball, a toy car, building blocks. . . And last but not least, since it's obviously a girl, I have a little stuffed horse to stimulate the imagination!"**

Yuki could barely balance all the toys in his arms. He never really planned to buy anything, but considering that Choco needs to be constantly entertained, **"Fine I'll take them. How much do you want."**

Van pulls out a calculator, and starts punching in a bunch of numbers. **"The bill will come out to this."** said Van while showing him the total.

Yuki was shocked at the number. **"What! You want that much!? That's a whole two weeks' worth of work!"**

**"Hey, I never said that raising kids was going to be cheap!"** said Van. Yuki didn't have much of a choice. He throws Van his wallet, even though Van loves money, he is an honest businessman. **"Thanks for the business!"** he said as he gives Yuki back his wallet after removing the sum.

Yuki went back into the room, and dumps the toys on the floor. **"What is all this stuff?"** asked Choco.

**"What do they look like?"** answered Yuki. **"They are toys to keep you busy while I am out."**

Choco grabs one of the building blocks, and makes a pretty annoyed face. **"Daddy, these toys are for little kids!"**

**"Umm. . . Last time I checked, you are a little kid."** said Yuki.

**"But-"**

**"No buts! I paid good money for these, so I expect you to make good use for them!"**

Choco nods. After Yuki leaves, she starts to rummage through the pile of toys to see if anything would suit her. The first thing she grabs is the drawing pad and crayons. She tries her best to come up with something, but she ends up drawing nothing. Then she starts to bounce the inflated rubber ball around, but without someone else to play with, she got bored within minutes.

Her boredom quickly fades as soon as she saw the stuffed horse within the rest of the toys. She holds it up in front of her in awe as she stares into its glass bead eyes. She finds its blank expression, brown fur and black mane to be rather cute.

**"Hello there! So, what's your name?"** asked Choco. Even though the stuffed horse says nothing, Choco pretends that it's talking to her. **"You don't have a name? Well, then let's give you one! I'll name you. . . Uma-Kun! Uma as in horse, and Kun because you're a boy! So Uma-Kun, do you want to play with me?"** Choco looks at the ball that she was playing with earlier. **"You wanna play _'horse ball'_? How do you play that game?"** Choco looks at the crayons next to the drawing pad. **"Oh I get it! I'll get started right away!"**

At 2:00 PM, Yuki finally returns to the inn. Gotz told Yuki while he was at the farm that the room was complete, and that he was allowed to return to the house. Yuki is glad that he'll finally have a room all to himself once again. However, he still knows that life will never be the same as long as Choco is living with him.

As soon as he got close to his room, he hears a large crashing sound coming from inside. He opens the door in to find Choco jumping on the bed hitting the ball using Uma-Kun as a bat against the wall. The wall had a bunch of crayon drawn circles that resembles a giant sized dart board. Choco was trying to hit the ball in the center circle, but the ball was knocking over everything else in the room. The crashing sound Yuki heard earlier was from a lamp that Choco hit just before Yuki entered the room. There were also other items that had broken within the seven hours Yuki was working.

**"OH MY GOD!!! CHOCO STOP!!!"** yelled Yuki. He tries to stop her, but as soon as he runs in, he steps on the toy car, and falls on his back. Choco then notices him, so she jumps off the bed, and lands on his chest knocking the wind out of him.

**"Daddy, I take it all back. These toys are great! Thank you so much!"** said Choco.

Yuki becomes furious, his face is steaming with anger. But he took a few deep breaths, and calms down. He takes Choco down to Ruby and makes her apologize for the broken items in the room. Yuki offers to pay for the damages, but Ruby had everything insured.

Yuki then grabs all of this things, and returns to the farm with Choco. They are both impressed at the work Gotz did with Choco's new room. It was as big as Yuki's room, had plenty of room to run around and play, and plenty of storage for toys and clothes. The bed was a bit too big for Choco, but nobody complained.

To be continued.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

_Spring 10, 2003_

It's now mid-afternoon. Yuki and Choco are in the house doing their own thing. Yuki is reviewing some paperwork that he received that morning in the mail. Choco was in the living room playing with Uma-Kun while watching cartoons on TV. Things were quiet and peaceful for the moment.

Soon enough, a knock on the door disrupts Yuki's concentration. **"Come in!"** yelled Yuki.

Lumina opens the door, and slowly walks in carrying a small package behind her back. **"It's me, Lumina! Am I interrupting?"**

**"Of course not."** said Yuki. **"What can I do for you?"**

Lumina pulls the box from her back, **"I brought you a gift. It's chocolate."**

As soon as Choco hears the word _"chocolate"_ come out of Lumina's mouth, she runs up to her, and snatches the box from her hands. **"Thanks lady!"** said Choco as she runs back to her room.

**"Choco! That was really rude!"** yelled Yuki. **"Come back here right now, and apologize to Lumina!"**

Choco is so preoccupied thinking about chocolates, she never heard her father as she runs to her bedroom. She shuts the door behind her, and starts to devour the chocolates without hesitation.

Yuki gets up from his char, and quickly walks up to Lumina. **"I'm so sorry about Choco. I have no idea where she gets her manners from."**

**"Oh, it's okay. She's just so cute, how can I ever get mad at her? But. . ."** Lumina looks over at the pile of paperwork that is on the table where Yuki was sitting at. **"What are you doing?"**

Yuki notices Lumina stare at the papers that came in the mail. He sighs as he walks back to them. Lumina follows him, and notices that they were all legal documents. **"These are vital records that I requested from my hometown Atland. They just came in this morning. I really wanted to find out who is her mother, and what in the world happened 10 years ago."**

**"What did you find out?"** asked Lumina.

**"Nothing!"** sighs Yuki. **"I checked every last office. Medical records, school records, church records, nothing comes up! According to what I have here, Choco shouldn't even exist. But yet, here she is."**

**"That's really strange. Maybe she wasn't born in Atland. Maybe she was born in the next city over, and she was raised in Atland."**

**"Even so, I should have gotten something. But no matter how hard I look, I can't find any trace of Choco, or her mother. Whoever she is, she doesn't want me to know who she is."** Yuki sits on the char again. The stress that has built up all morning long was giving him a slight headache, and he needed to rest. **"I don't get it, I have never had a girlfriend before, let alone a lover. How in the world could a virgin have a kid?"** Yuki notices Lumina stare at him awkwardly. **"You don't believe be, do you?"**

**"Well, I would like to. . . But. . ."** Lumina and Yuki moved their attention at Choco's bedroom door where they both could hear her munching on Lumina's gourmet chocolates. **"I'm sorry, but it's hard to believe you. It's like saying I don't believe I Santa Clause when he's sitting right in front of you."**

**"It's fine, I wouldn't believe me either if I was in your shoes."** said Yuki with a depressed look on his face.

Lumina noticed how stressed Yuki looked. So she placed her hand on his shoulder, and offered him some words of encouragement. **"You know, raising a child all by yourself must be tough, especially for a single parent. Maybe you should. . . You know, find yourself a nice wife to help you raise her."**

Yuki looked at Lumina awkwardly. **"And by a wife, I take it that you are talking about yourself?"**

Lumina's cheeks turn red in embarrassment. She looked away, and held her warm cheeks trying to hide her shy look. She knew where she was trying to get at, but she never thought that Yuki would catch on so quickly. **"I wasn't trying to suggest myself. . . But if you think that I would make the best wife, I wouldn't mind taking up that responsibility."**

**"Nice try."** said Yuki. **"But Choco is my responsibility. I'll have to take care of her myself."**

**"Are you sure you can handle it? Raising a child is not something easy to do alone."**

**"Come on, she's ten years old already. How hard can it possibly be?"** said Yuki full of confidence.

_Spring 11, 2003_

Yuki was in the middle of feeding his cows when he hears a commotion coming from outside. He puts down the bales of fodder, then walks out the barn to find out what's going on. As soon as he walks out the door, he finds Choco in the pasture chasing all of his chickens while carrying a tree branch.

Yuki freaks out and screams, **"CHOCO!!! Are you insane?! Stop chasing my chickens!"**

Choco stops as soon as he heard her father's voice. She hides the branch behind her back and says, **"What did I do?"**

Yuki runs up to her, and snatches the tree branch from behind her back. **"Choco, you can't chase my chickens! Chickens lay good eggs when they are happy. And chickens are not happy with a kid chasing them around."**

**"Oh, I'm sorry."** apologized Choco.

Yuki placed his hand on his head to try to relieve the instant headache Choco gave him. **"Choco, why don't you go back home, and play there? I'll go play with you later."**

**"Ok. . ."** sighed Choco.

As Choco returns to the house, Yuki tries to calm the frantic chickens that were still running around the pasture. Some of the chickens have even jumped the fence, and ran out of the farm in fear. It takes Yuki about an hour to return all the chickens to the coop, and feed them. As soon as he is done with the animals, Yuki goes over to his mushroom shed to check if the fungi were ready to sell. However, when he twists the knob, he notices that the door was locked.

**"Oh, I forgot. I keep this door locked to keep the hobos out. It's a good thing I leave the key inside the house."**

Yuki goes back inside the house to get the key to the mushroom shed. Next to the door is a rack of hooks where Yuki keeps the keys. However, the key to the mushroom shed is missing. He hears a flush coming from the bathroom. The door is open, so he checks to see what's going on. He sees Choco inside, but she was not using the bathroom. Yuki thinks that she was just playing with the toilet.

**"Choco, I'm missing a set of keys. Have you-"** said Yuki. As soon as he gets close, he notices Choco dropping the keys that he was looking for in the toilet. The water was still draining when she drops them. Yuki screams his lungs out, then moves her out of the way trying to get the keys that she dropped, but he is too late. **"Oh my god, that was the only copy that I had. Choco, why did you do that?"**

Choco steps back nervously. **"I was just bored. I never see you use them, so I thought it was junk. It's fun to see stuff go down the hole."**

**"Stuff?"** asked Yuki. **"What else did you drop in here?"**

Choco points at the pile of empty toilet paper cores. As soon as he realizes what Choco did, he slams his own head against the toilet seat screaming trying to vent his anger. Choco got scared, so she runs back to her room, and closes the door behind her.

_Spring 12, 2003_

Yuki leaves the cows out in the pasture that morning to graze on the fresh green grass. He wanted to take out the chickens too, but after what happened yesterday, he feels that it would be better if they remain inside for a while. As he filled the crates with chicken feed, he hears an unusually loud _"moo"_ coming from the pasture. He drops the chicken feed on the ground, and runs outside.

As soon as he runs outside, he sees Choco out in the pasture with the rest of the cattle. He almost faints as soon as he saw her pulling on the tail of his best cow Bess. He runs up to Choco and yells, **"CHOCO!!! Let go of Bess right now!"** She releases Bess, then looks up to see her father's angry frown.** "What the heck did you think you were doing?"**

**"I was hungry."** answered Choco. **"I just wanted some milk, but the stupid cow didn't wanna give me any. So I thought that if I pulled it's tail, it would give up and give me some."**

Yuki sighs, and says, **"You know, you're old enough to make a sandwich on your own. And besides, milk is not a food, it's a drink."**

**"Oh!"** said Choco.

Yuki rubbed his head in disbelief. **"Please, just go home. If you're hungry, I have more than enough food in the kitchen. I'll bring you some milk later, okay?"**

**"Ok."** said Choco.

Choco goes back home to find herself something to eat. As soon as Yuki is done with the chores of the farm, he grabs one of the bottles of milk, and brought it back to the house. However as soon as he enters, he drops the bottle on the ground out of shock. He finds Choco sitting on the kitchen counter eating all of the chocolates she found in the cupboard.

**"OH NO!!! MY CHOCOLATES!!!"** yelled Yuki.

As soon as she heard her father's yell, she hid the chocolate that he had in her hands behind her back and says, **"What did I do?"**

Yuki walks up to her in fury, nearly stamping on the floor. He grabs the chocolate that she held behind her back and said, **"What do you mean _'what did I do?'_, what do you call this?"**

Choco puts her chocolate covered fingers in her mouth and says, **"I'm sorry, but I was hungry. You took too long with the milk."**

**"Chocolate is NOT food, it's candy!"** Yelled Yuki. **"By the way, how much chocolate did you eat?"**

**"All of it."** Choco said nervously.

**"All of it!? I had over 100 chocolate bars!"** Yuki runs to the open cupboard, and saw that all of his stash of chocolates were gone. He screams, and beats his head with his own knuckles. Choco runs back to her room again, and closes the door so that she doesn't hear Yuki beat himself up.

_Spring 13, 2003_

Early in the morning, Yuki returns to the animals to care for them for the day. This time, he decides to leave all the animals inside the barns and coops. He starts with the chickens, they are pretty calm after what Choco did to them a couple of days earlier. The cows are fine, but Bess is still upset about having her tail pulled by Choco.

The sheep were a different issue. As soon as Yuki walks into the sheep barn, Choco is already inside. She had Yuki's wool shears in her hands cutting the sheep's wool in funny patterns. Yuki screams to the top of his lungs which upsets the sheep, and they all were running around the barn in shock.

**"Oh hey daddy!"** said Choco cheerfully. **"Look at what I did, ain't they pretty?"**

Yuki takes the shears away from Choco's hand. **"Choco! These are sheep, not poodles! You can't just cut their hair any way you like! Don't ever touch these shears again! Do you understand me?"**

Choco looks at the ground with guilt, and says, **"I'm sorry."** She rubs a tear that started to develop in her eyes. Yuki feels bad about yelling at her. He puts his hand on her head and says, **"Choco, if you want to show off your artistic talent, you have crayons and an art pad in the house. Why not draw me a picture instead?"**

She happily nods, and runs back into the house. Yuki sighs, and checks the wool that Choco clipped from the sheep. The wool is so badly cut, it could not be used or shipped. He has to throw everything away, and wait another week until the sheep could be sheared again.

Later that day, Yuki returned home. However, he is not pleased when he saw the condition of his home. All of his walls has drawings made by Choco's crayons. Choco is in the kitchen drawing little rainbows and butterflies on the refrigerator door.

**"CHOCO!!! What did you do to my house!"** yelled Yuki.

**"Oh, daddy, you're home! Whens dinner?"**

**"Don't change the subject on me!"** Yuki points at the closest wall drawing, **"What is all this?"**

**"That's a cow grazing over a field of grass over some clouds. Pretty good huh?"**

**"Yeah, for a kid your age, this is pretty good – Wait a second, why am I praising them!? Choco, why did you draw on my walls!? You have a drawing pad, don't you!?"**

**"But I ran out of paper."** said Choco showing Yuki the drawing pad.

Yuki takes a few deep breaths trying to control his anger. As soon as he's calm, he says, **"Okay, from now on, if you run out of paper, DO NOT DRAW ON MY WALLS! Just let me know, and I'll get you some more paper. Is that clear?"** Choco nods. **"Fine, now please go to your room."**

Choco goes to her room quietly, Yuki looks at the mess made by Choco, and sighs heavily. He has no other choice, but to get his cleaning tools, and clean up the mess. He didn't even ask Choco to help, because he's afraid that she'll only make things worse.

_Spring 14, 2003_

Nami pays a visit to Yuki's farm in the middle of the day. The door is open, so she let herself in. She finds Yuki sitting in the dining room with his head resting on the table. Nami walks up to him, and taps on his shoulder to see if he is sleeping or awake. Yuki looks up into Nami's blue eyes with a look of stress and exhaustion on his face.

**"Are you Okay?"** asked Nami.

**"I'm so tired."** answered Yuki. **"That girl is harder to handle than I've ever imagined. She's supposed to be ten years old, but I swear that she acts like if she was half her age. She has no common sense, she always causes trouble or damage to the farm, and she always wants to play. I don't know how long can I last at this rate."**

Nami smiles and says, **"Sounds like you need a little help. I think what you need is a good wife to help you raise Choco. I can name someone who would more than happy to be your wife. Someone with red hair, and blue eyes."**

**"Deja vu."** said Yuki. **"A young brunette with amber colored eyes said a very similar line like that one just the other day. She even brought me chocolates as an offering, but Choco stole them."**

**"Darn! She beat me to the punch!"** thought Nami. She then noticed that Choco was not in the house, so she asks, **"Where is Choco anyway?"**

**"She told me that she's going to pick some flowers by herself."** answered Yuki.

**"Are you sure it's okay to let her pick flowers on her own?"**

**"She's only going to pick flowers."** answers Yuki. **"What kind of harm could she possibly do?"**

**"Daddy, I'm home!"** yelled Choco carrying a bouquet of small white flowers.

**"Uh oh!"** yelled Nami as soon as she saw what Choco brought home with her.

**"Choco, you didn't!"** Yuki runs to Choco, and inspects the flowers that Choco brought with her. **"Oh my god, you did! How could you!?"**

**"What did I do?"** asked Choco.

**"Those are not flowers, they are strawberry plants that were about to give fruit!"**

**"Oops! I'm sorry, I didn't know."**

Yuki takes the bouquet from Choco, and places a hand on her shoulder. **"Okay, I promise I won't get mad. How many of these did you cut down?"**

**"All of them."** Choco says nervously.

Yuki screams, and runs out the house to check the condition of his field. Just as Choco said, all of the strawberry plants were cut down. Yuki falls to his knees and says, **"I can't believe it. One hundred and eighty eight strawberry plants were destroyed right under my nose, and I didn't even notice it coming. The entire strawberry harvest is completely ruined!"**

Nami leaves the house, and finds Yuki on his knees trembling with anxiety. She walks up to him, and tries her best to comfort him. **"Calm down Yuki. She didn't mean to destroy the harvest. There is still plenty of time before the season ends, so you can grow another harvest. Besides, maybe she did a good thing. After all, you are allergic to-"** Yuki did not want to finish hearing Nami out. So he stands up, and starts to leave the farm. **"Where are you going?"** she asked.

**"I'm heading over to the Blue Bar. I seriously need a drink."** answered Yuki.

**"But what about Choco, you can't leave her home alone."**

**"Babysit her then!"** snapped Yuki leaving Choco in Nami's care.

Yuki arrives at the Blue Bar a good ten minutes after leaving the farm. He goes to sit on his usual stool, and slams his head against the counter. Muffy quickly notices Yuki, so she goes up to check on him. She could tell by his entrance that he was very stressed.

**"Hey there Yuki, how are you?"** asked Muffy.

**"Please, just kill me."** said Yuki.

Muffy smiles and says, **"I bet that Choco is giving you a hard time. You know, if you need a wife to help you raise a child, I'll be more than willing to take the role of a mother figure."**

**"Not you too. You're the third person who is taking advantage of the fact that I have a kid living with me now."** said Yuki.

**"I'm just saying that you don't have to do this by yourself. This would just be a lot easier if you were married, that's all."**

**"Thanks for the advice, but I'll manage somehow."**

Muffy was pretty disappointed at Yuki's answer. But seeing that Yuki can barely handle raising Choco all by himself left her feeling confident that he will change his mind soon. Suddenly, the telephone rings. **"Hello, this is the Blue Bar. How can I help you?"** answers Muffy. She hears an odd sounding voice on the other end of the line requesting to speak to someone who is supposed to be in the bar. She is not familiar with the name, but she places her hand on the phone and yells, **"Excuse me everyone! Is there a Ben Dover in the bar? Is there anyone in the bar named Ben Dover?"**

Everyone in the bar suddenly laughs out loud. Muffy didn't understand why everyone was laughing at first. Then she thinks about the name requested. After she realizes that the call was a prank, she she puts the phone back on her ear and says, **"Excuse me, who the hell is this?"** She hears the laughter of a child on the other end of the line. **"I know that voice. Choco, is that you?"**

Yuki screams his lungs out, and leaves the bar in a hurry. He returns to his home as quickly as he could, and finds Choco and Nami laughing in the living room. It didn't take long until they notice Yuki in the house steaming angry. Choco points at Nami and says, **"She made me do it!"**

**"I didn't make you do anything!"** Yelled Nami. **"I just gave you the phone number, and dared you. You had the option of refusing."**

Yuki is still angry. Choco runs to her room, the only place where she can be safe at this point. Nami sweats nervously and says, **"I just remembered, I have a doctor's appointment. See you later!"** She then runs out of the farm in a hurry leaving Yuki all by himself.

Back at the hut, the Witch Princess is rolling on the floor dying from laughter. Feet kicking in the air, fists slamming on the floor, she really is enjoying Yuki's torment. After a while, she finally finishes laughing. She goes over to her crystal ball, and watches Yuki throw himself on his bed trying to relax.

She smiles ans she says, **"I never would have thought that my plan could work this well. I almost feel bad for the guy. . . Never mind, no I don't. This is his punishment for trying to fix everything that I worked hard to accomplish. Trust me Yuki, this is not the torment I have planned for you. Just you wait, I will make you suffer even more."**

To be continued.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

_Spring 19, 2003_

Yuki arrives home at 5:00. He is tired, covered in dirt, and sore from the hard farm work. Even though he has been working on the farm for three years, he is not yet fully adapted to the farmer's way of life. After throwing his dirty rucksack on the ground, he goes over to the dining room where he can sit on the table to relax. It wasn't long until Choco notices him enter the house. She grabs her stuffed horse, and runs over to where he sits.

She tugs on his shirt to grab his attention. **"Daddy, Daddy! Can we play 'Horse Ball' together? I've gotten really good, and I wanna see how good are you!"**

**"How many times do I have to tell you not to play that game in the house? You might break something."** said Yuki.

**"Oh, okay."** said Choco as she returned to her bedroom.

Yuki gets up from the table, and takes a shower. The cold water from the shower chills him to the bone, and threatens him with a cold. It is an inconvenience when you live in the middle of a valley, and hot water is difficult to get in a farm house. However, Yuki has already adjusted to this way of life.

As he walks out of the bathroom in his robe, Choco runs in carrying her toy car. Yuki jumps in shock thinking that Choco was still in her room.

**"Daddy, daddy! Do you want to have a race? I bet my car is faster than yours!"** yelled Choco full of energy.

**"Can't you see that I just came out of the shower? Besides, I don't have a car, so I can't play."**

**"Sure you do!"** Choco pulls out a handmade car that she built out of a milk carton, two sticks, and four buttons as wheels. **"You can use this car daddy. I even colored it blue, your favorite color."**

**"Just because my farming clothes are blue, that doesn't mean it's my favorite color."** commented Yuki. **"Besides, I need a nap. See ya!"**

Yuki walks back to his room while Choco looks at him with a disappointed look on her face. Yuki throws himself on the bed, and prepares to take a nap. Working on the farm every day, and taking care of an over energetic ten year old has worn him out. He questions if taking care of a child is something he can handle on his own. All the other girls from Forget-Me-Not valley has already volunteered to marry Yuki and help care for Choco, but he turned them all down already.

Choco Bursts in the room carrying her building blocks with her. Yuki stares at her with a very annoyed look in his eye. Choco doesn't notice it, so she walks in happily, and jumps on his bed.

**"Hey daddy! You wanna build a very tall house with me. I wanna build something at least 10 feet tall this time, and I need your help!"** yelled Choco.

**"You don't have anywhere near enough blocks to build anything that high. Besides, this room is not even that high, so it's impossible to do that."**

**"Oh, ok."**

Yuki sits up, and rubs Choco on the head. He's annoyed with her, but he tries his best to keep his temper. **"Choco, listen to me. I had a hard long day at work today, and I need to rest for today. So please, won't you let me rest for today. I'll play with you some other time."**

Choco nods, then leaves. Yuki laid down on his back, and stares at the ceiling for a while. He thinks about a lot of things. Like how things were when he was still young, and his parents were still living together as a family. A tear fell to his cheek as he also remembered the days when his father lost his job, and he was having trouble keeping food on the table. This lead to friction between his parents. In the end, it lead to a separation.

Yuki's father still needed to provide for his son, so he went to Forget-Me-Not Valley to work on a farm. Yuki was still a young boy when this happened. He even still remembers the promise he made to his father before he left. He promised to take care of his mother in his father's place. Even though his parents were no longer married, neither of them remarried.

After a long think of the past, Yuki starts to think about his present. Without knowing how or why, he is now taking care of a ten year old child. He knows that Choco means well, but she is a bit too playful and energetic. She always wants to play, but Yuki needs to care for a farm. He still has not even a clue on her mother's whereabouts, and even wonders if she really is his daughter.

_Spring 20, 2003_

Muffy pays Yuki a visit that afternoon. Yuki's door was unlocked once again, so she just lets herself in. She finds Yuki in the dining room, resting his head on the table again. She could tell that Yuki is exhausted, and Choco is the reason. But she plays like if she doesn't know, and approaches him. She taps on his shoulder to get his attention. Yuki looks up at her with bags under his eyes.

**"Hey there Yuki! Is anything the matter?"** asked Muffy.

Yuki sighs and says, **"Three. . . Two. . . One. . ."**

As soon as he finishes the countdown, Choco bursts out of her room holding her drawing pad. Without noticing Muffy, she hops on a chair, and opens the drawing pad. She placed a red crayon next to Yuki, expecting him to play with her. **"Daddy, let's play Tic-Tac-Toe! This time, you'll be the red color, and I'll be the black. It'll be fun!"**

**"Choco, how many times are we going to play that game until you had enough? We've been playing that game for five days. Besides, neither of us ever wins anyway."**

Choco thinks about a new game for her to play. She used her black crayon to draw 144 dots on the drawing pad in a 12 x 12 pattern. **"Daddy, let's play capture the dots! We'll take turns drawing two lines, and if you make a square you get a point. The person with the most points win!"**

Yuki finally sits up, and looks at Muffy. **"She's been like this since she came to live here. All she wants to do is play games, and she won't leave me alone. She even waits for me outside the bathroom when I take a shower, or do my other business. I'm tired, and I don't know how long can I keep doing this for."**

Ignoring everything Yuki just said, Choco hops off the chair, and starts pulling on Yuki's shirt. **"Daddy! Come on, I wanna play! You can speak to the lady anytime, it's time you spent time with me!"**

**"Choco, can't I just get a day off? All you want to is play, play, play."**

**"But you didn't play with me yesterday! It's not fair!"** complained Choco.

**"I'm sorry, but I am not a kid anymore. I am a grown adult that needs to work! I work and play all day and all night long, can't I have any time to myself anymore?"**

Choco looked down at the floor sadly. She started to sniffle as if she is about to cry. Yuki felt sorry, but he couldn't handle playing with her for another day. This gave Muffy a good idea. She walked up to Choco, and squatted down so she can speak to her face to face.

**"Hey there Choco. Would you like to play with me?"** Asked Muffy.

Choco looked at Muffy with a sour pout. **"No way! You're no fun! What kind of games can an old lady like you play?"**

**"Old Lady?"** thought Muffy while clenching a fist. She quickly takes a few breaths, and tries to relax. As she tries to calm her nerves, she thought, **"Okay Muffy, calm down, she's only a kid. If I can get her to like me, then I'm sure that getting Yuki to marry me will be a lot easier. I can do this! I believe in myself!"**

**"Choco!"** yelled Yuki. **"Don't talk to adults like that! Now apologize!"**

Choco looked up at Muffy and said, **"Sorry. . ."**

**"Good, now why don't you play with Muffy. Maybe if you hang out with her, you'll learn to be a young lady instead of a child."**

Choco nods in agreement, and she leaves the farm with Muffy. Yuki stretches his arms in relief, the house is now quiet. After a few minutes of silence, he rolls his stiff shoulders to try to loosen them up. **"God, my shoulders are so stiff! It may be Spring, but it's still a little chilly outside. The cold showers don't help much either. At this rate, by the time I'm 30 years old, I'll be in trouble."** After thinking about his dilemma in peace, Yuki remembers that a hot spring was discovered last year. He nods his head, and decides to relax at the hot springs.

Near the pond close to the beach, Choco is playing with her ball all by herself while Muffy watches her. She places her hands on her hips and says, **"See, I knew that this parenting business was a piece of cake. All I have to do is keep an eye on her, and make sure that she keeps out of trouble."**

**"Oh really?"** says Nami standing with Lumina, Celia, and Flora. **"If it was so easy, why did you call us here?"**

Muffy smiles and says, **"I thought it would be a good idea if all six of us girls would hang out together. Something like a women's day off."**

**"Yeah right!"** snapped Flora. **"When it comes to parenting, you are just as clueless as Yuki is! You're planning on us taking good care of Choco, and then taking all the credit."**

**"Oh, come on, don't think that way."** said Muffy nervously. **"We can call this a contest, whoever can get Choco to like you the most wins Yuki's hand. Naturally, I intend to win!"** Muffy starts having a fantasy of her wedding day with Yuki over at Mineral Town's church. She wears a huge white wedding gown, and Yuki in a tuxedo. Choco is walking behind them spreading flower petals all over the place. Such a vivid fantasy leaves Muffy's face red with anticipation. All the other girls look at Muffy in disbelief.

**"You're so full of it!"** snapped Nami. **"What makes you think that you will win Yuki? After all, there are 4 other women here who are equally as pretty, but much younger."**

Celia thinks about the situation for a moment. **"Hey, I just realized something. What if Choco's mother comes to Forget-Me-Not Valley to take back not only her daughter, but Yuki as well? And since she's also from the city, what if she's huge and mean like in the movies?"** Celia has a vision of an enormous middle ages woman taking Choco and Yuki back to Atland by force, and Celia is helpless to stop her. The mere thought causes her to shrug in fear.

Flora places her hand on Celia's shoulders, and smiles. **"So, I guess you've given up on Yuki then? That's okay, that means one less rival for me! I on the other hand am not afraid of any city folk. I am a black belt of the art of Taekwon do! If someone dares to take Yuki away from me, they will pay with a whole world of hurt!"** Flora has a vision of her standing over a knocked out enormous middle aged woman like a kick boxing champion. Then she claims her prize, Yuki and Choco. She giggles at the thought of Protecting Yuki from another woman.

Lumina feels that it is her turn to say something. **"Hey everyone! Haven't any of you ever thought of the possibility that maybe Yuki really isn't her father?"**

Muffy, Nami, Celia, and Flora looks at Lumina with an evil glare. Lumina steps back feeling like if she has touched a sensitive subject.

**"Don't tell me that you actually believe the story about Yuki being a virgin and everything? Come on! Yuki is a man, and there is usually one thing that flows through a man's brain!"** said Muffy.

**"Yeah, considering how many times you've got dumped, you would know that better than we do."** commented Nami.

**"But think about the facts for a minute. Yuki is only 22 years old, and Choco is 10 years old. When Choco was born, Yuki must have been only 12 years old at the time. And even so, considering Yuki and Choco's birthday being so close together, Yuki must have been only 11 years old when Choco's mother got pregnant. Don't you think that something doesn't add up?"** After Lumina gave her explanation, everyone thought for a few minutes.

**"Even though you have a point, the paternity test proves that Yuki is her father."** answered Flora. **"With that in mind, there's just no other explanation."**

**"I may have an idea!!"** yelled Daryl who suddenly appears on the scene. All the girls jump in shock when the mad scientist makes his appearance.

**"Daryl!! What are you doing here!!"** yelled all five young women.

**"Well, I could see you all from the lab."** said Daryl pointing at his laboratory not too far from where they were all standing. **"But that's besides the point! You all want to know where Choco came from, right?"** Everyone nods. **"I have also looked into the facts, and I also have trouble believing that Yuki could have had a child at such a young age. So therefore, I've been looking into other methods that she could have come into this world."**

**"So, what did you find?"** asked Nami.

**"Well at first, I thought that she might have been a clone of Yuki himself. However, I find that to be impossible as well. Clones are a replica of the original parent. Considering that Yuki is a man, and Choco is a little girl, cloning was taken out as a possible answer. Besides, the paternity test proves that there was a second parent involved, Choco's DNA only contains half of Yuki's, meaning that there is in fact a mother somewhere."**

Everyone looks at Daryl awkwardly. Muffy sighs and says, **"That's it? All that research you did, and that's all you could find out! You know. . . For a genius, you're pretty stupid!"**

**"Can't you tell us something that we all don't know!"** yelled Lumina.

**"Well, I also took into consideration that Choco has memories of her father, but Yuki has none of Choco. This goes past the simple explanation of forgetfulness. Yuki has been living here for several years, so Choco's memories of him should be that of a child. But that doesn't seem to be the case considering that she remembers him as a man. This makes me think that Choco really is his daughter, but not yet!"**

**"Not yet?"** asked Nami. **"What the hell are you talking about?"**

**"In shorter words, I think that Choco might be from the future!"** announces Daryl.

All the girls look at him even more awkwardly. Flora feels that she needed to say something, so she steps forward, and says, **"Listen to me Daryl. I don't know what goes on in that creepy head of yours, but time traveling is definitely not possible."**

**"According to Einstein's theory, it is!"** said Daryl. **"We as simple human beings do not know how, but who knows what will happen in a few years?"**

Lumina was intrigued with his theory. **"So, assuming that she really did come from the future, how do you explain the fact that she cannot remember her own mother?"**

**"Well, you see. . . In order to break open a gate between now and the time where Choco came from, you need to use a lot of powerful energy waves. These energy waves can sometimes disrupt a person's brainwaves, causing partial amnesia. She might have forgotten much more than just her mother. She may have also have forgotten the main reason why she is here in the first place."**

**"You know, that does kinda make sense."** said Flora.

Celia, Nami, and Muffy looks at Flora with disbelief. **"You're not buying into this story either, are you?"** asked Muffy.

**"Hey, it's just a theory, not an actual fact."** answered Flora. **"After all, considering Choco's situation, the simplest answer may not be the correct one. We should leave our options open so that we don't look dumb in the end."**

Daryl nods and says, **"I'm glad that you're seeing things my way. But to be sure, I would like to borrow Choco and run a few experiments on her. This shouldn't take long."**

Daryl starts to walk towards Choco, but five hands suddenly stopped him on his tracks. He turns around to see five angry faces that have a murderous look them.

**"If you lay a hand on that kid!"** yelled Nami.

**"I swear, I'll kill you!"** continued Muffy.

All five girls tied Daryl up, and threw him back in his lab. They slammed the door shut, leaving him inside.

**"The nerve of that guy! I can't believe that he actually thought that we would agree to let him take Choco away like that!"** said Nami angrily.

**"It would be hard to explain that to Yuki. _'Sorry Yuki, but I let your daughter be used as one of Daryl's lab rats.'_ I would never have a chance with him if that ever happened."** said Muffy.

**"Are you sure it's okay to leave him in there like that?"** asked Celia. **"I wonder if he could get untied on his own?"**

**"Who cares! He got what he deserves, now let's go."** answered Flora

As they were all about to leave and return to Choco, Lumina stops everyone with an odd thought. **"Hey everyone, I just thought of something! If Choco really is from the future, then could it be possible that maybe one of us is her mother?"**

**"One of us?!?!"** asked Muffy, Flora, Nami, and Celia. They all start to have the same thought in their head. A few years in the future, Yuki would just choose a bride and have a daughter named Choco.

**"One of us as Yuki's wife? I'm sure it's me, after all, he likes me the most. I could already see me as his wife someday."** said Celia blushing from the thought.

**"Yeah right! Over my dead body!"** said Muffy.

**"I think I would become Choco's mother! After all, I always thought she looks a little bit like me!"** said Flora full of excitement.

**"No she doesn't!"** yelled Muffy.

**"No way, I'm sure that I am her mother! She's wild and energetic, like me!"** cheered Nami.

Muffy broods over the thought that she might lose Yuki to another girl. Lumina sweats as the other girls argue over who might Yuki's future bride might be. So she fans her hands up and down and says, **"Calm down everyone! After all, we are not sure if Daryl's theory is even true. Let's not get so worked up."**

**"Oh shut up!"** snapped Nami. **"If one of us is indeed Choco's mother, then she has to look a little bit like one of us! Let's go back to her, and see if we can find out who it is!"**

Celia, Flora, and Muffy nods, and runs to where they left Choco. But when they arrived, Choco was already gone. The only thing that they find was the ball that she was playing with.

Muffy panics and says, **"Oh no! She's gone! If Yuki finds out I lost his daughter, I'll never have a chance at becoming his wife!"**

**"There she goes!"** yells Nami pointing at Choco who is running to the north. **"Wow, she's fast!"**

**"This is no time to be impressed!"** yelled Muffy. **"After her!"**

Everyone runs after Choco without a clue of where she is heading. Choco runs so fast, that none of the other girls is able to catch up to her. She kept running in random directions trying her hardest to find her father.

Yuki is in the hot springs taking a nice relaxing bath. He looks up in the sky, and sees the clouds move by. The stiffness in his shoulders are melting away quickly, and the stress that has built up also fades into the hot water.

As Yuki stares into the Spring sky, he says to himself, **"Boy, this feels so good, I knew that this would be a good idea. I do feel bad for Muffy, I hope that Choco is not giving her a hard time. But this day is so perfect, I don't think anything could possibly go wrong."**

"**DADDY!!!"** yelled a familiar voice. Yuki looks forward, and finds Choco running into the hot springs. She jumps into the hot water fully dressed, while Yuki was completely naked. Using the towel that he had on his head, he was able to cover his front.

**"Choco!! What are you doing here?!"** yelled Yuki.

**"Daddy is so mean! Leaving me with the boring old lady, I wanna play with you!"**

**"Can't you see that I'm taking a bath here? Get out!"** Yuki then realizes that something was odd. **"Wait a second! Where's Muffy?"**

**"CHOCO!!!"** yelled Muffy as everyone barges into the hot springs without realizing that Yuki was already in there. Everyone gasps as soon as they saw Yuki in the hot springs. Yuki is so shocked to see all five girls that he accidentally drops the towel revealing everything to them. Lumina passes out as the first sight of Yuki's manhood.

**"What's wrong with her?"** asked Nami. **"She never seen a naked man before?"**

**"Gyah! I didn't want to see that!"** said the Witch Princess who was still watching from her crystal ball.

To be continued.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

_Spring 21, 2003_

After the incident the day before, the girls goes over to Doctor Hardy's office to have a maternity test performed to see if one of them is Choco's mother. They don't give a clear reason why they want it done, so Doctor Hardy protested against the plan to perform them. However, Lumina changes his mind by donating a heavy sum to his office. He then takes a blood sample from each girl and Choco's sample over to Mineral Town where the test can be performed.

All five girls wait patiently for the results with anticipation. They all believe that the results might determine which one of them will get to marry Yuki in the near future. As they wait, they all chat about the possible results, and they plan to do when they discover who is Choco's mother. Sometimes they would chat peacefully, other times they would get frustrated and argue.

After eight hours of waiting, Doctor Hardy finally arrives back at his office with five folders, each of them containing one individual result for each girl. He hands the results to each girl, then sits on his desk to wait for their reaction. They all open the folders and examines the contents. Muffy was very confident before she opened the folder, but her spirit shatters when she sees the huge 'negative' print on the results.

**"Negative? You mean that I am not Choco's mother?"** asked Muffy. **"There has to be some sort of mistake!"**

Doctor hardy is not surprised by Muffy's reaction. **"The test is 99.9 accurate. I think I also mentioned that to Yuki."** said Doctor hardy while signing some paperwork.

Muffy turns to the other girls and demands, **"Okay, who is it!? Which one of you got a positive result!?"**

After lowering her test results and sighing, Nami says, **"Not me, I came out negative too."**

Celia continues, **"Not me either."**

Flora closes the folder and says, **"My test says that I have a zero percent probability that I am her mother. What a disappointment, I was so sure that I was."**

Muffy, Nami, Celia, and Flora looks over to Lumina. She has a very shocked look on her face which made the other girls nervous. Muffy walks up to her and demands, **"Lumina, what are your test results?! Are you Choco's mother or not?!"**

Lumina cries as she lowers her folder and says, **"I am not Choco's mother either. . ."**

An artery pops up on Muffy's forehead, she tries her hardest not to hit her out of frustration. **"Why didn't you tell us earlier!"** yelled Muffy.

**"Honestly."** said Doctor Hardy. **"What possessed you girls to believe that any of you could be Choco's mother. Giving the situation, it would be clear that none of you are without taking a test."**

**"MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS!!!"** yelled all five girls. After tossing the test results on his desk, they all leave the clinic. After walking around the valley for a moment, they all find themselves in front of Yuki's farm. All they did was stare at it and sigh.

**"Does this mean that Yuki will not get married with any of us?"** asked Celia.

**"Don't be ridiculous!"** yelled Muffy. **"Just because Daryl said that she is from the future, that doesn't make it true. We only took the test to be sure."**

**"But that still means that there is another girl out there who is Choco's mother. And the threat that she'll come to the valley and take both Choco and Yuki away still exists."** said Flora.

**"Yuki isn't going anywhere!"** yelled Muffy.

Nami nods and says, **"If one of us can marry him before she comes around, there isn't anything Choco's mother can ever do to take him away. Choco can decide on her own which parent she wants to live with. But since she's already here, she'll most likely stay with Yuki."**

Lumina asks, **"But Yuki doesn't want to get married to anyone. How will we change his mind before it's too late?"**

**"Choco of course!"** said Flora. **"We all know that Yuki is having trouble taking care of her on his own. If one of us can prove that she can be the best mother figure for Choco, I'm sure that Yuki will change his mind."**

**"But what if Yuki still doesn't want to get married?"** asked Lumina.

Flora continues, **"If Yuki doesn't want to marry any of us, then there is no way that he'll want to marry Choco's mother either. There isn't anything to worry about, in the end it's going to be either one of us or nobody at all."**

All the girls nods and cheer. Believing that Choco is going to be the only link they have to get into the marriage bed, they all prepare their plans to court Yuki through his daughter.

_Spring 22, 2003_

At around noon, all five girls arrived at Yuki's farm. Each one of them is holding a gift for Choco hiding behind their backs. They sigh nervously, they had planned to come individually. But since all the girls want to impress Yuki as quickly as possible, they all decide to make this a group event. So they all march to the house lined up like soldiers. Closer and closer they move to the house. Their hearts are beating faster, almost like if they are about to enter war. However as they get close to the house, they hear a huge explosion coming from the inside of the house. They can smell smoke from the outside. Thinking the worst has happened, they all run inside the house to check on them.

The kitchen has a huge cloud of smoke coming from the oven. Yuki rushes out of his bedroom and runs into the kitchen without noticing that he has visitors. Choco is already in the kitchen wearing oven mittens holding a charred cake that she pulled out of the oven.

**"What happened here!"** yelled Yuki.

Choco raises her failed cooking attempt and says, **"I just wanted some chocolate cake daddy. But I think I made a mistake, and the oven blew up."**

**"I thought I told you yesterday that you are not old enough to use the oven!"** yelled Yuki. He checks the condition of the kitchen, everything is either damaged from the explosion or covered in black soot. He rubs his aching head and says, **"Do you have any idea what this is going to cost me? Now I'm going to need a whole new kitchen, and I can't cook anything until then!"**

The five girls look at one another and smile. Seeing that this is a perfect opportunity to impress Yuki, they decide to take advantage of the situation. They all take a deep breath, and sing, **"Hey Yuki!"**

Yuki and Choco look over to the other girls. Yuki feels embarrassed because of the condition of the kitchen. However, the smiles of the five girls start to make him feel nervous. He couldn't tell if they wanted to talk to him or eat him. **"Hi, what can I do for you girls?"** asked Yuki.

Muffy steps forward and asks, **"Hey, you don't mind if we borrow Choco for the day, do you? We just want to play with her, if that's okay?"**

Yuki scratches the back of his head nervously. After the incident of the day before yesterday, he thought for sure that they didn't want to have anything to do with her anymore. But now that they all have come to ask to play with Choco, he is speechless. **"I don't mind, but it's really up to Choco."** Yuki looks at Choco and asks, **"Do you want to play with them Choco?"**

Choco grabs on to Yuki's arm and whines, **"No daddy! Those ladies are too boring! I wanna stay here and have fun with you!"**

The five girls already knew that Choco is going to respond that way. So they all take their gifts from behind their backs, and presents them to Choco. Then they all sing, **"We have chocolates!!"**

Choco quickly lets go of her father's arm, and runs over to her bedroom where she grabs her mini rucksack full of toys. She then runs to the women, and yells to her father, **"Daddy! I'm gong to play with the ladies! See you later!"** Then they all leave the house leaving Yuki behind.

Yuki looks at the mess that is left behind for him to clean up. Rather than complaining, he gets out his usual cleaning tools, and starts cleaning up. He also leaves the TV on to the shopping channel in case he finds any good deals of cooking tools he could not salvage.

Close to the pond near the beach, Choco and the other women set up a blanket where she may eat her chocolates. The other women watches in astonishment as Choco devours all of the chocolates given to her.

**"I know she's a kid, but she eats a lot of chocolate, even for her age!"** said Muffy. **"I can't believe she's eating five days worth of chocolate all by herself, and she doesn't even look nearly full. Even Yuki can't eat nearly that many chocolates in one sitting."**

Nami says, **"Considering the situation with Choco, everything about her is amazing. Or just plain weird."**

Twenty minutes after starting, Choco finally finishes all of the chocolates given to her. All the girls watch her in shock as she licks her fingers. A normal child would have gotten a stomach ache, but Choco was fine and wanted more.

**"I can't believe it!"** yelled Lumina. **"She ate all of it! It's almost like if she's and endless pit when it comes to chocolates."**

After licking her fingers clean, Choco gets up and stretches her arms. **"Okay then, time to play!"** yelled Choco cheerfully.

All the girls smiled at her enthusiasm for playing. Flora stands up an asks, **"What game do you want to play?"**

Choco thinks for a moment. Looking through her rucksack full of toys, she pulls out six art pads. Since Choco likes to draw, Yuki bought her several art pads to prevent her from drawing on the walls. She gave a pad to each of the women, and one for herself.

**"Let's have an art contest!"** yelled Choco. **"Let's draw our most favorite thing in the whole wide world! Whoever draws the best wins!"**

Everybody nods. Choco passes out some crayons and pencils to everyone, then they all sit and start to draw. After about an hour later, Choco raises her drawing so that everyone can see. **"I'm done! Look at what I drew! I drew a picture of daddy!"** In the art pad, Choco drew a picture of a man wearing blue farming clothes, a blue hat, brown hair, and holding a pitch fork. She dances around as she yells, **"Okay, its your turn! What did you draw!"** All five women reveals to her what they drew, and they are all drawings of Yuki. Lumina being the most skilled in art drew the best portrait. Everyone is amazed at the detail Lumina put into the drawing.

Afterwards, Choco decides that it is now time for something a little bit more physical. She pulls out the ball and her stuffed horse from her rucksack, and says, **"I wanna play Horse ball now! Who wants to play with me!"**

Everyone stares at her for a moment. Muffy asks, **"How the heck does she fit all that in her rucksack?"**

Nami answers, **"Doesn't surprise me, you should see what Yuki can fit in his rucksack."**

Flora asks Choco,** "How do you play Horse ball?"**

Pulling out several crayons, Choco locates the closest wall. She then draws a dart board on the wall. As she draws, every one watches her speechlessly. Lumina asks, **"Should we be allowing her to do this?"**

Celia answers, **"I guess as long as we clean it up, there should be no problem."**

After Choco finishes the drawing, she points at it with her crayon and says, **"Here are the rules! You hit the ball against the wall, and collect points. Whoever misses the ball loses! Since I am the only person who has a horse, the rest of you can use your hands."**

**"And what are the point for?"** asked Flora.

Choco thinks for a minute and responds, **"I dunno. But it's a fun game! Uma-Kun invented it. Come on, let's play!"**

Muffy steps forward and says, **"I'll go first! If there's one thing I am confident about is my physical ability!"**

**"Well it's surely not your age."** joked Nami.

Muffy becomes angry at Nami's comment about her age, but she had no choice but to let it go. Choco threw the ball up in the air, then hit it with her stuffed horse. The ball hits the center of the target, and flies to Muffy's direction. Muffy attempts to smack the ball, but completely misses it. **"Um. . . I guess I lost?"** Asked Muffy.

**"Yeah, you kinda suck at this."** said Choco. She then points at Flora and says, **"Okay lady, you're up!"**

**"Let me show you how it's done."** said Flora full of confidence. Choco throws the ball in the air, and hits it with her stuffed horse once again. As soon as it gets close to Flora, she yells and punches it as hard a possible. She punches the ball so hard that it bursts. Flora did not know what else to say other than, **"Oops!"**

**"You broke my ball! You big meanie, why did you do that!"** yelled Choco. She then starts to cry her lungs out.

**"You idiot! Look what you did!"** yelled Muffy.

Flora kneels down, and rubs Choco's head trying to calm her down. **"I'm sorry Choco, it was an accident. I'll buy you a new one I promise."** Choco stops crying, but she still held a sad face. Flora faces the other women and asks, **"Where the hell is Van when we need him?"**

**"Van only comes to Forget-Me-Not valley on days that end in 3 or 8. So he should be coming around tomorrow."** answered Lumina.

Flora pulls out some chocolate from her pocket, and hands it to Choco. The chocolates puts Choco into a better mood. As Choco eats the chocolate, Flora tells her, **"I'll buy you a new ball tomorrow, let's play something else for now."**

Choco nods in agreement. The five women continue to play for several hours with Choco. However, as each hour passes, the women only become even more exhausted, Choco still has plenty of to spare. At 6:00 PM, all the women are resting on the grass completely worn out. Muffy sits up and says, **"Wow, this kid has energy! How does Yuki do this every day?"**

**"It's probably all the caffeine in the chocolates."** struggled Nami.

Choco runs up to he crowd of exhausted women and demands, **"Come on! It's not time to sleep yet! There's still 3 hours left before my bedtime! Let's play some more!"**

Just then, Yuki walks by looking for everyone. From the road, he can see Choco yelling at the other girls. He walks up to them and yells, **"Choco! It's time for dinner! Let's go!"**

Hearing Yuki's voice gives all the girls strength to stand up again. Everyone waves and sings, **"Hi Yuki!"**

**"Has Choco been giving you trouble?"** asked Yuki.

Celia smiles and says,** "Of course not! She's a little angel. We had a lot of fun today, isn't that right Choco?"**

Choco nods cheerfully. Yuki is very surprised that the women has done well with Choco, and they have not asked for anything in return. Yuki smiles at them and says, **"Thanks for your help, I really appreciate it. See you all later!"** He then walks back to the farm taking Choco with him. All the girls sigh happily as they watch him walk away.

**"Yuki actually smiled at me! I knew that he likes me!"** cheered Celia.

**"No way, she smiled at me."** snapped Nami.

Muffy interrupts, **"This is not over. We still need a lot to go before any of us can steal Yuki's heart. Tomorrow, the battle continues."**

Everybody nods, and then returns to their homes. As they all scatter, each of them starts to come up with their own plan. They were all working together to make Choco like them, but now they all plan to work individually to accomplish their goals.

_Spring 23, 2003_

At noon, Choco is in the kitchen eating some lunch that Yuki had bought for her. As she eats, Flora pays a visit to Yuki's farm with a wrapped package hidden behind her back. She knocks on the door, and Yuki answers moments later. Yuki is surprised to see her at the farm, especially since she normally doesn't come over twice in a row.

**"Is Choco here?"** asked Flora.

Yuki nods and lets her in. Flora walks towards Choco with a suspicious smile pasted on her face. Choco stares at Flora and says, **"Hi lady. What's up?"**

Flora places the gift on the table. Choco pushes her lunch to the side and opens the box. Inside the box is a ball that is significantly larger than the one Choco had yesterday. Choco cheers and says, **"Yay! A new ball! Thank you very much!"**

Yuki walks to Flora and asks, **"What happened to her old ball?"**

Choco tries to answer, but Flora places a hand on her mouth and says, **"We had a little accident yesterday, and the other one popped. But I volunteered to buy a new one**."

Yuki scratched his head and says, **"Um, that's pretty nice of you. Thanks."**

Flora laughs because Yuki has no idea that it was her who broke the old one. Soon, Muffy walks into the house with a gift of her own hidden behind her back. **"Hey Choco!"** she called.

Choco runs to Muffy and asks, **"Yes lady?"**

**"I have a little present for you!"** said Muffy. She pulls out a stuffed bear from behind her back, and shows it to her. Choco stares it at oddly. The stuffed bear is brown in color with huge eyebrows. It's huge eyes looks creepy to Choco, and some patches can be found on it's arms and legs. **"It's name is Daachan. Isn't he cute!"**

**"It looks kinda scary."** said Choco.

Then Celia walks into the house also carrying a present. Inside the box were flower seeds that are not usually sold in Forget-Me-Not-Valley. Then Nami walks in carrying a gift box of her own. Inside the box were artifacts that she had dug up from the digging site. She thanks everyone for their gifts, but she is more interested in getting chocolates than anything else. However, Lumina comes in last with a small child's size bicycle for Choco.

**"Wow, Thank you lady!"** cheered Choco trying to mount her brand new gift. However, Choco does not know how to ride a bicycle yet, so she falls down. All the other women leer at Lumina angrily. Everyone else has only a limited amount of money, but Lumina lives in a huge mansion with more than enough wealth.

Muffy decides to take the initiative. She walks out of the house dragging Choco with her. **"Come on Choco, let's play!"**

**"Hey, I want to play with her too!"** yelled Lumina, Celia, Flora, and Nami. They all follow her out of the farm and into the same place where they all played the day before.

Yuki watches them as they practically kidnap his daughter in front of his eyes. He can't tell if he should let them go or stop them. He just scratches his head and says, **"I wonder how did they get so many days off? I could understand Nami, but the others?"**

Everyone arrives at the pond near the beach again. Unlike the day before, Choco could feel the hostility in the air as each girl is now competing for her attention. This makes Choco feel slightly uncomfortable. Muffy squats to Choco's height and asks, **"So, what do you want to play Choco?"**

Before Choco is able to respond, Nami calls out to her. She points to the same wall that they played Horse ball the day before and says, **"Let's play Horse ball Choco! I think I'll do quite well, and I promise I won't pop the ball!"**

Flora then yells, **"Choco! Want to play tag? I'm a good runner!"**

Then Celia approaches Choco and says, **"Want to play tic-tac-toe? I promise, I'll make it fun!"**

Lumina yells, **"Choco, how about a game of hide and seek? I bet you won't be able to find me!"**

Choco is confused that the number of games that the other women wants to play, each of them wanted to do something different. Muffy on the other hand wanted to play with her all by herself, but the competition is getting a bit out of control. So Muffy grabs on Choco's arm and tells her, **"Hey, want to go play in my room? We could do each other's hair, and talk about lots of things. It'll be fun!"**

But as she starts to walk off with her, Nami grabs Choco's other arm and stops her. **"Where do you think you're going with Choco, huh?"** asked Nami.** "I will not let you have her all to yourself."**

**"It's none of your business, now let go of her!"** demanded Muffy.

**"You let go of her you old bat!"** yelled Nami.

**"How dare you call me that you stubborn tomboy!"** insulted Muffy.

**"Stupid bar girl tramp!"** continued Nami.

**"Ugly shemale!"** returned Muffy.

As they went back and forth insulting each other, they both pulled onto Choco's arms in the opposite directions. Choco whined and cried, but Muffy and Nami were too busy fighting to notice. Lumina, Flora, and Celia tried their hardest to stop the fighting, but Muffy and Nami are too stubborn to stop.

**"What is going on here!"** yelled Yuki who followed the women not too long after leaving the farm. Muffy and Nami stops fighting after hearing Yuki's voice. They then finally notice Choco crying, so they both release her. Choco wastes no time to run to Yuki, and hide behind his back.

**"Daddy, daddy! Those ladies were mean to me!"** cried Choco.

All the women look down in shame. Trying so hard to make Choco like them, the only thing that they accomplished in doing is upset her. **"I'm sorry, we just wanted you to like us."** said Nami.

Choco pulls her eyelid down, and sticks her tongue out at them. She then held Yuki's arm and says, **"Daddy, why don't you play with me instead. We'll have so much fun like we used to before!"**

Yuki stares at Choco and asks, **"Like before? What are you talking about?"**

**"You know, when it was just you, me, and mommy together by the cherry blossom. Please, let's go back to that tree, and have fun!"**

**"What are you talking about? I don't know any tree, and I don't even remember us playing together!"** yelled Yuki.

As the conversation continues on, the other five women watches in shock. **"Oh my god. It's just like Daryl said. Memories of a time that has not happened yet."** said Flora.

**"Could it be true? Is Choco really from the future, and none of us will marry Yuki?"** continued Lumina.

All the women sigh, and walk away in shame. They all head over to the Blue Bar where they can drink away their troubles. After they are all seated, Griffin comes out of the back room to see who has come in. He is surprised to see Muffy and everyone else looking gloomy.

Griffin asks curiously, **"What happened? Looks like the world is coming to an end."**

**"Shut up and die!"** everyone yelled together. Griffin felt that his presence is not needed, so he returns to the back room. All the girls sigh uncontrollably for a while.

Celia plays with a napkin as she says, **"It's over then. In the future, Yuki will marry someone else, and move away to Atland. He'll leave us all behind as a bunch of single women who doesn't deserve his attention."**

Muffy slams her fist on the counter and says, **"No way! We can't give up yet! I swear that I'll make Yuki mine, even if it's the last thing I do!"**

**"But we all know that it'll never happen."** said Flora. **"There isn't anything we could do about it."**

**"I think Muffy is right!"** yelled Lumina. **"Maybe Choco really didn't come from the future. Maybe there is another explanation. But whatever that reason may be, even if there is a slight chance that Yuki will marry any of us, we still have to try!"**

Nami stood up and yells, **"You're right! I shouldn't give up, and neither should any of us! Who is with me!"**

Everyone stands up and cheers loudly. The thought of losing Yuki to a strange woman is enough to tear their spirits apart. But the confidence they all give one another is enough to make them keep on going. As they sit and chat, they plan on their next attempt to impress Yuki. What will their next plan be?

**To be continued.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

_Summer 1, 2003_

The Summer festival is held today, a time where parents take their children to the sandy beach to enjoy the first day of Summer. Yuki had never attended this festival before because he had always been single and without children. Now that Choco has entered his life, he is attending the festival with the rest of the parents for the first time.

Yuki arrives at the beach wearing his swimming trunks, towel hanging from his shoulder, and his usual blue hat on his head. On his left hand, he is carrying a parasol to make some shade, and a picnic basket full of chocolaty treats and a blanket. On his right hand, he is holding Choco's hand escorting her to the beach. Choco is dressed in a deep blue one piece swim suit that Yuki had ordered for her earlier, sandals so that she doesn't burn her feet, and her hair tied up in double baos.

Choco gasps in admiration as she arrives at the clean blue ocean of Forget-Me-Not Valley. Kate and Hughs' families are already there having fun at the festival. Many other families from nearby villages and a cities are also attending the festival.

**"Daddy, daddy, look at how many people came today!"** yelled Choco as she points to the crowd. **"Where did they all come from, I've never seen them before!"**

**"Most of them came from other places where the beach is not as clean as ours."** Yuki kneels down to Choco's level, and looks at her with a serious face. **"Now listen to me Choco, you promised me that you are going to be at your best behavior. Remember, no bothering strangers, don't accept chocolates from people you don't know, and do not fight with other children. Do you understand?"** Choco nods in agreement. Yuki looks into the distance and finds Kate and Hugh playing together making sand castles. Yuki points at them and says, **"Why don't you play with them while I set up the blanket."**

**"Okay!"** cheered Choco as she runs to Kate and Hugh. Finally having a free moment, Yuki relaxes on the beach blanket under the parasol.

As Yuki lays under the cool shade of the parasol, Muffy sneaks up on Yuki. As Muffy gets close, Yuki hears her foot steps in the sand and looks over at her. Naturally, Muffy is wearing a red bikini that is showing off the best of her curves for Yuki. Muffy smiles as she sings, **"Hi Yuki."**

**"Muffy, what are you doing here? You're not a parent."** asks Yuki.

**"Oh come on, there is no rule that single women can't come to the beach today."** Muffy looks around looking for Choco. **"Where is Choco by the way?"**

**"She's playing with Kate and Hugh right now. Looks like she's getting along with the other kids of Forget-Me Not Valley."**

Muffy waits for any compliments about her swimsuit, but Yuki just lays under the parasol quietly. She is disappointed, but knows that this is normal for Yuki. Instead, she asks, **"Can I sit next to you?"**

Yuki moves to the side giving Muffy enough room to sit in the shade. She sits next to him, and waits for him to say something. But Yuki continues to remain quiet. Muffy stares at Choco playing with the other children for a few minutes, and sighs. Muffy always wanted to have Yuki's child, but the sight that he already has one only complicates her plans. Muffy tries her best to use Choco to her advantage, but Yuki is now even less interested in marriage.

Yuki notices Muffy stare at Choco, so he finally speaks out, **"What are you thinking about?"**

Muffy answers, **"Nothing special. Just wondering why have you never decided to get married. That's all."**

**"My situation is complicated, even before Choco came to Forget-Me-Not Valley."** Yuki sits up and watches Choco plays. Painful memories of his own childhood replays as he watches his own child. **"To tell you the truth, I never wanted to have any kids. It's not that I hate them, but I guess I never saw myself being able to raise a family. I know I'm not making any sense, but that's the only explanation I can give. Choco is cute, and everyone in Forget-Me-Not Valley likes her. But she is a tough kid to raise. Not to mention that she is an odd girl. She still doesn't remember who is her own mother, she remembers things about me that never happened, and when it comes to chocolates, she has a hole that cannot be filled."**

**"Did you find out anything about her mother?"** asks Muffy.

**"No. I tried everything. I called my old friends from Atland, and they also told me that I am a virgin. I have never even came close to having a girlfriend or lover. But at the same time, I cannot find any proof that Choco is not my kid either. I thought that if I wait for Choco's mother to suddenly appear on her own, maybe I can get some answers. But it's been nearly a whole season since Choco came to live with me, and still no sign of her mother. I'm starting to believe that either she died, or she abandoned her. Either way, Choco doesn't want to remember what happened to her own mother."**

**"So, what are you going to do?"** asks Muffy.

**"The only thing I can do. I'll have to raise Choco myself. Whether I want to admit it or not, she really is my daughter. I'll have to take responsibility."** answers Yuki.

**"That's very admirable Yuki. Lots of men would not want to deal with things like this. When Choco first arrived here, I thought that you were going to be like one of those guys. I was upset at the thought that you were not going to accept the fact that Choco is your child. But just as you promised, you took her in when you accepted the fact that you are a father."** Muffy slowly tries to place her hand on Yuki's. **"You know, if you ever need a wife to complete your family, my hand will always be available for you."**

Before Muffy's hand touches Yuki's, he pulls his away pretending to scratch his nose. Muffy felt disappointed again, but she just sighs and accepts that this is the way Yuki is. Being able to sit next to him at least is good enough for her for that moment. But she continues to fantasize about the day Yuki offers her the blue feather.

_Summer 2, 2003_

Yuki gets ready to leave the farm to do some shopping. As he is grabbing his wallet and rucksack, Choco walks out of her bedroom carrying Uma-Kun with her. She was in the mood to play games with Yuki, but she is now curious to see where is Yuki going. She already knows that her father has finished his work for the day.

**"Daddy, where are you going?"** asks Choco.

**"I'm going to head over to Mineral Town to do some shopping. I always do heavy grocery shopping in the beginning of each season."** answered Yuki.

Choco jumps up and down as she asks, **"Can I go too!?"**

Yuki wanted to protest, but remembering how much trouble can Choco cause while she is home alone scares him. He imagines him coming back from shopping, and finds the entire farm on fire. His wild imagination causes him to change his mind. **"Fine, you can come. But Uma-Kun stays home."**

Choco nods, and leaves her stuffed horse in her room. They both move over to the beach where they catch a boat that is heading over to Mineral Town. Walking to Mineral Town is cheaper, but taking the boat is much faster.

On the boat ride to Mineral Town, Choco is running around looking out to the ocean full of excitement. Yuki watches her as she is amazed to ride on a boat. He wanted to question her about her boat ride to the valley almost a season ago, but knowing her, she will not give an answer that Yuki will understand.

Choco gasps as the boat reaches close to the beach of Mineral Town. She points at the beach and yells, **"Daddy, look! Is that the place?"**

**"Yes, that is Mineral Town. I come here every season because there are no real shops back at home. A lot of people know me here, so you can say that this is my second home."** Yuki walks up to Choco, and kneels down to her level. Choco knows by now that when Yuki does this, it's usually means that he wants to tell her something serious. **"Now Choco. Since we're here, I'm going to lay down some rules. First, no running off by yourself. Second, be at your best behavior. Third, don't follow someone you don't know. Mineral Town is a peaceful village, but there are usually strangers that come from other places too. Do you understand?"** Choco nods.

After the boat docks, Yuki talks to the ferryman, and pays him the fee for the boat ride. As he talks, Choco gets bored and takes a look around. She finds a shop called Kai's Seaside Shack not too far away. She knows that she promised that she would not run off, but since it isn't too far away, she decides to pay it a visit while Yuki is not looking.

She runs to the stand, and finds a young tanned skin man with a purple bandanna running the shop. He is cooking some orders to be delivered when Choco got there. She rings the bell and yells, **"Hello mister!"**

The owner of the shop named Kai turns around and notices Choco. He smiles and says, **"Hi there cutie. What can I get for you today?"**

Choco places her index finger against her chin as she thinks. **"Lets see. . . I want 10 bars of chocolates, chocolate cake, a bunch of chocolate cookies, a stack of chocolate pancakes, some chocolate covered marshmallows, chocolate ice cream with chocolate syrup, the bottle of chocolate syrup, a cup of hot chocolate, and a bag of M&M's."**

Kai looks at her awkwardly as he says, **"I'm sorry sweetheart, but I don't sell any of that."**

**"Well doesn't that just suck!"** complained Choco.

Yuki walks up to Choco, and grabs her arm. **"Choco, where did you learn how to talk to people like that! Apologize to Kai right now!"**

Kai smiles and says, **"Don't worry about it Yuki. She didn't mean any harm. Who is she by the way?"**

Choco points at Kai and says, **"But Daddy, that man is so weird. He doesn't sell any chocolates at his store!"**

**"Just because a shop doesn't sell chocolates, that doesn't make the owner weird. Now apologize. . ."** Just then, Yuki notices Kai stare at him with a shocked look in his face. Yuki can tell that he is shocked because Choco called him _"daddy"_. Kai and most of Mineral Town already knows Yuki's age, and the fact that Yuki is supposed to be a virgin. He starts to feel nervous, so he bows his head and says, **"Sorry Kai, I am in a hurry. See you later!"**

Yuki runs off dragging Choco along with him. Kai still stands in his ship shocked to hear what Choco said. He drops his spatula as he says to himself, **"Did that kid just call him _'daddy'_?"** He runs out of his shop, and watches Yuki run off with his daughter. As he leaves the beach he says, **"Wow, Yuki you dog! And he started at such a young age too."** He flexes his right arm and he continues, **"Fine then! I'll also do my best with the women too!"**

Just then, he smells smoke coming from his grill. He turns to see what is burning, and all the orders that he needed to deliver has caught on fire. He panics as he tries to put out the flames on the grill before his shop catches on fire.

Yuki scolds at Choco, **"I thought I told you not to run off on your own!"** as they walk through Rose Square.

**"But daddy, I didn't go very far."** answered Choco.

**"How far is not the issue here. Please don't go off on your own without me knowing."**

Choco places her finger in her mouth feeling guilty. But as they walk through the square, Choco notices a young woman with pink hair walking towards them. She becomes very curious, so she runs ahead to take a closer look.

**"Choco, what did I said about running off!"** yelled Yuki.

It takes the pink haired girl named Popuri a moment before noticing Choco run up to her. Popuri stops walking, and watches Choco orbit around her. She smiles and asks, **"Hello there, what's your name?"**

Choco stops and answers, **"Hi there, my name is Choco!"**

Popuri continues, **"Choco huh? That's a cute name. Where did you come from- OUCH!"**

Choco begins to tug on Popuri's hair trying to remove it. As she pulls, she says, **"Look daddy, her hair is not a wig, it's real! How did she get her hair to be that color?"**

Yuki panics and yells, **"Oh my god, CHOCO!!! Let go of Popuri's hair this instant!"** Choco releases Popuri's hair and places her hands behind her back. Yuki runs up to Popuri and says, **"Popuri, I am so sorry! Are you hurt?"**

Popuri pats her hair and says **"Don't worry about it, I get that a lot from strangers."** Then she thinks about what Choco says and asks, **"Wait, did she just call you _'daddy'_?"**

Yuki sweats nervously as he tries to answer, **"Um, well that is. . ."** Finding that he could not come up with a good enough answer, he grabs Choco's arm and runs away again. **"Sorry, I am in a hurry! See you later Popuri!"**

Popuri stares as Yuki runs off with Choco. She think for a moment, noticing that Choco does look like Yuki, she concludes that what Choco said had to be true. Popuri feels that she needs to spread the news, so she runs to the Inn where most of the citizens of Mineral Town can be found.

She slams the door open to grab everyone's attention. After taking a few deep breath from running to the Inn, she announces, **"Everyone listen up! I have big news!"**

One of the customers says, **"What is it now Popuri, did Begak lay another egg?"** Everyone laughs at the joke.

Popuri shakes her head and says, **"No, no! It has nothing to do with my chickens this time. It's Yuki from Forget-Me-Not Valley! He has a daughter now!"**

Everyone cheers loudly for a minute. The owner of the inn Doug says, **"Well, it's about time that young punk Yuki finally tied the knot."**

**"When did he get married I wonder?"** asked one of the elder customers.

**"I bet he knocked up that blond chick from the bar."** said a younger male customer. Everyone laughs at the joke.

Popuri shakes her head again and yells, **"Everyone, stop jumping to conclusions and listen to me! The kid that I saw Yuki with has to be about the same age as Stu or May. He has a ten year old for a daughter!"**

The bar went silent. Doug finally breaks the silences and says, **"Popuri, did you eat another bad egg? Yuki is 22 years old, there is no way he could have a ten year old daughter."**

Popuri points at the door and says, **"Tell that to Yuki! She looks just like him, and she is calling him daddy! And when I asked him about her, he just ran away from me!"**

Everyone in the inn stares at one another. Then one of the customers says, **"Do you think it could be true?"**

Doug says, **"Popuri may not be the brightest bulb in the box, but she doesn't lie either."**

Someone else in the inn says, **"I don't know about you, but I'm going to check it out!"**

Then everyone gets up, and walks out of the Inn to look for Yuki. As all this is happening, Yuki and Choco are outside the supermarket gasping for air. After they caught their breath, Yuki stares at Choco with a mean look on his face. Choco cringes in fear as she looks into his unhappy eyes.

**"Choco, didn't you promise that you were going to be in your best behavior?"** asked Yuki.

**"But-"**

**"No but young lady! Now, we are going to go shopping, and you better not cause any trouble. If you do, I'll leave you with one of the girls next time around! Do you understand?"** demanded Yuki. Choco nods.

They walk in quietly trying to avoid any attention. Yuki walks over to the pile of seeds for sale, and checks out for any good deals for Summer crops. As he shops, Choco looks around, and notices the food section. There, she saw a mountain of chocolates stacked in a corner. She knows that she promised that she would behave, but the chocolates clouds her judgment, and she runs over to the stack of chocolaty treats. Yuki notices her running off, so he chases her through the supermarket. Choco tries to jump into the pile of chocolates, but Yuki catches her in mid air.

**"Choco, what do you think you are doing!?"** asked Yuki.

**"But I am so hungry! I want some chocolates!"** yelled Choco trying to reach out for the chocolates.

**"I'm sure your stomach can wait until we get home, now calm down!"** yelled Yuki.

As Yuki struggles with Choco, the daughter of the supermarket owner named Karen walks out of the back. She notices Yuki struggling with Choco, so she walks up to them to help out. She grabs a bar of chocolate, and offers it to Choco. **"Here you go, it's on me."** said Karen cheerfully.

Choco takes the chocolate, and eats it without waiting for her to be put down. She smiles at Karen and yells, **"Thanks lady! I like you!"**

Yuki sighs and says, **"Sorry about that Karen. She's a bit hard to deal with."**

**"It's no problem Yuki, she's just so cute. Is she your little cousin or something?"** asked Karen.

Choco points at Yuki and announces, **"I am not a cousin, he's my daddy!"**

Choco's words stuns all the women who are shopping at the supermarket. Most of them knows Yuki, so learning that he has a daughter is a shock to all of them. Even Karen looks at him awkwardly and asks, **"Yuki, is that true? Are you really her father?"**

**"Well, it's hard to explain. . ."** said Yuki.

As he tries to think of a proper explanation, all of the other customers stare at him uncontrollably. Yuki can hear them say embarrassing things like, **"Oh my god, Yuki has a daughter?" "Look at her, she's old enough to be his sister." "How old was Yuki when he slept with her mother?" "Why has Yuki been hiding her all this time?" "And I thought he was a pure soul."**

Hearing them accuse him of awful things, Yuki panics and runs out of the supermarket. However, the rest of Mineral Town from the Inn is already outside looking for them. When they find him, they all crowd around him and stare at Choco. There are so many voices that Yuki cannot make anything out. Yuki is trapped, he has no choice but to break through the crowd and run to the beach with Choco.

As they rush to the dock, they notice that Kai's shack has caught on fire, and he is trying his best to put it out. Yuki wants to stop and help him, but the crowd of curious villagers are following him. He rushes into the boat, and demands that it sets sail to Forget-Me-Not Valley immediately.

The boat departs, and they are safe. However, Yuki knows that he should stay away from Mineral Town for some time until things has settled down. He couldn't blame Choco too much, it isn't her fault that everyone made a big deal about Yuki being a father. Mineral Town is a small village, and any big news tends to drive everyone a bit crazy. Even Forget-Me-Not Valley reacted in a similar manner when they everyone found out that Yuki is a father.

**To be continued.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

_Summer 4, 2003_

Muffy is in her room at 9:00pm crossing out the fourth day of Summer on her calendar. She sighs as she takes a look at the fifth day of Summer feeling depressed and lonely. On the fifth square, she had already written _"Happy Birthday"_ on it as a constant reminder of her own birthday. Usually, her birthday is a time for happiness and celebration. But this year, and the years following it will forever be different.

She places her hand on the calendar and says, **"I can't believe it. I never would have thought I would come to this day. Tomorrow, I'll be thirty years old, and I'm still not married. It's not fair, all of my high school friends are already married and have at least 2 kids already. I'm the only one who hasn't yet."**

She walks away from the calendar, and crashes on her bed. She spends a few minutes staring at the ceiling remembering the failures she's endured in her love life. Muffy is indeed beautiful. But because of that, no man has ever taken her seriously. She thought that moving to forget-Me-Not Valley would be a foolproof way to find a husband quickly. But five years later, she has not gotten lucky.

She turns her head to find Yuki's Photo resting on the nightstand next to her bed. She sits up, and picks up the photo of the young, caring, and handsome farmer who lives not too far away. There are several single men in Forget-Me-Not Valley, but most of them are even older than she is. Yuki is the only guy that she reserves a special place in her heart.

As she stares into the photo, she remembers all the great times she had with Yuki. She knew him for three years, and tries her best to wait patiently for the blue feather. But as the years pass by, her chance of getting married to him seem to be getting dimmer.

After staring at Yuki's photo, she returns to her bed and falls asleep. She wishes that tomorrow would never come, but she does not have the ability to stop time. All she can do is try a bit harder to get married to the young farmer. Even though that there is a lot of competition, and Yuki now has a daughter living with him, she refuses to give up. She decided a long time ago to continue to fight until the last day.

**Summer 5, 2003**

After getting dressed up in her usual red dress and blue mini jacket, Muffy heads down the stairs to help Griffin prepare the Bar. When she reaches the bar, she finds Griffin talking on the phone. As soon as he notices her, he calls her over covering the bottom end of the phone. Griffin then passes over the phone to Muffy telling her that someone called from her hometown.

**"Hello?"** said Muffy. She hears the voice of her mother on the other end of the line. **"Oh hi mom! . . . Yes, I know it's my birthday today, I was going to call you later. . . Married? No, not yet, I'm still working on it. . . An arranged marriage? Mom, you know how I feel about that. I do not want to get married to some stranger. . . Yes, I know that you want to see your grandkids soon, but things are not as easy as you think. . . A boyfriend? Well, I do have this one guy I'm sort of seeing, but he's not yet ready for a commitment yet. . ."**

Muffy continues to listen to her mother's ranting for another hour or so. Griffin spends the time Muffy took to speak to her mother cleaning out dishes and mugs. After a while, Muffy says, **"Okay mom. I promise I'll do my best here in the valley. . . Goodbye."**

She hangs up the phone, and collapses on one of the bar stools. Explaining to her mother why isn't she married yet drained a lot of her energy. Griffin notices that Muffy is done speaking to her mother, and walks out to the bar drying out an empty mug. **"Your mother giving you a hard time?"** asked Griffin.

**"She's even more impatient than last year."** answered Muffy. **"It's not my fault that I'm still single. I mean I have bond hair, green eyes, I take good care of my figure, and I look younger than I really am. I just don't get how no man would want to take a girl like me seriously. Most guys just want to have a few nights of fun with me, then they move on to the next girl on their list. It's not fair."**

Griffin smiles and pulls out three tickets out of his pocket. He shows them to Muffy offering them to her. Muffy stares at them and asks, **"What are those for?"**

**"I'm letting you have the day off today because it's your birthday. The circus just came into town yesterday, and I'm sure that you could find two other people to go with. Like a young farmer and his kid."** answered Griffin.

Muffy's mood changes from depressed to happy. She takes the tickets and runs out of the bar saying, **"Thanks Griffin, you're the best!"**

Griffin continues to smile as he watches her leave the Bar. He knows that he has strong feelings for Muffy, but he just watches over her like her guardian. Griffin is 15 years older than Muffy. Because of that, Muffy sees him as a member of her own family, not a bachelor. Even so, he still watches her hoping only the best.

Yuki, Choco, and Muffy walk together to the circus that has set up on the east side of Forget-Me-Not Valley. Yuki stares at Muffy nervously as she hums a cheerful tune. Choco is just happy that she is going to the circus for the first time. As they walk, Muffy says, **"What a wonderful Summer day this has turned out. Clear skies, bright sun, birds are singing, and I am on a date with the greatest guy in the world."**

Yuki sweats and says, **"Muffy, I am only going with you because it's your birthday. This is not a date."**

Muffy happily ignores him, and continues to walk. Soon, they hear the sounds of the circus band playing, and they see the circus from a distance. Choco becomes even more excited as they approach the circus. Even Yuki becomes excited to go to the circus, he has never been to one before either.

The ticket man accepts their tickets, and they walk in. There are so many stands that none of them can decide what do they want to do first. They decide to eat some of the carnival treats like cotton candy , funnel cake, churros, and chocolate covered apples. Next they decide to try out the games at the circus. Yuki plays the test of strength game where you hit the target on the ground with a hammer, then a counterweight flies up and hits a bell. Choco participates in a chocolate eating contest, and wins by a heavy margin. Muffy and Choco both end up with a lot of prizes to take home.

Their next stop is a drink stand. The line is a bit long, so Yuki and Muffy waits while Choco sits on a bench. After a few minutes of waiting, Choco gets bored, and starts to walk around close by. As she takes a look around on her own, a strange short man jumps out in front of her and yells, **"Hi there!!"**

Choco shrieks and kicks the man between the legs where it hurts the most. The strange man collapses on the ground in pain holding his crotch. Everyone stops to stare, Yuki and Muffy finds Choco in the middle of the crowd of people holding some drinks. **"Choco, what did you do this time!?"** yelled Yuki.

**"Daddy, that man is scary!"** answered Choco.

The strange man jumps on his feet and yells cheerfully, **"Sorry about that, it was my fault!"** Yuki and Muffy jumps back as they are both surprised to see him recover so quickly. Seeing that the man is okay, the crowd disappears. The short man is wearing a blue and gray business suit, a blue top hat, dyed blond hair, and a red bow tie on his neck. He has extremely small eyes, and a tattoo on each of his cheeks, a star on his right and a heart on his left. After dusting his clothes off, he says, **"My name is Barney, I am the ringleader of this circus! I didn't mean to scare the little princess, but I couldn't help myself."**

Choco hides behind Yuki. He feels obligated to introduce them, so he says, **"My name is Yuki, I own a farm here in the valley. This is my daughter Choco, and with me is Muffy."**

Barney smiles and continues, **"Looks like your here with the family. It's great to see a husband and wife taking their child to the circus."**

Muffy blushes from being told that they were a couple. But Yuki rains on her parade and says, **"We're not married. We're just friends, that's all. It's her birthday today, and I'm just keeping her company."**

**"So are you here to see the show?"** Barney asked unexpectedly.

**"The show?"** asked Yuki.

Barney points at the bulletin board behind them. On the bulletin board. They turn around and see a young woman with jet black hair wearing a blue leotard standing in it. Next to her are the words, _"Mimi the amazing acrobat and friends"_ written next to her. **"She is the star of this circus. We would be happy if everyone would come watch her perform. Naturally, I'll be there too as an announcer."** said Barney.

Yuki takes a hard look at the bulletin board and says, **"Wow, she's real pretty."** He turns to Choco and asks, **"You want to watch Mimi perform?"** Choco nods happily. Yuki grabs Choco's hand, and they walk to the big tent to watch the show.

Muffy pouts for a minute saying, "**The whole three years we known each other, you never said that I was pretty. . ."** After a moment, she follows Yuki into the tent.

The tent is full with a lot of people from many different places, including Mineral Town. Yuki tries his best to hide from his friends until things have settled down in Mineral Town. They were able to get great seats in the middle of the stands. Not too far, yet not too close. Choco drinks her chocolate milk as they wait for the show to start.

After a few minutes, Barney comes out of the curtains and announces, **"Ladies and Gentlemen! Thanks for coming to the show! We have a lot of performances to show you! Funny clowns, ferocious beasts, tricks that deceive the eye, but most importantly. . . The Amazing Mimi!"** Everyone claps and cheers as they watch Mimi swing through the air. Muffy becomes a little jealous because Yuki is watching Mimi more than her, but she still tries her best to enjoy the performance.

After the opening act, the curtain opens and a bunch of clowns start performing throwing pies at one another, and telling jokes. Everyone laughs as they watch the clowns act silly. After the clowns, Mimi swings on the trapeze singing a beautiful melody that leaves the crowd in awe.

As they continue to watch, all the chocolates that Choco has been eating catches up to her. She pulls on Yuki's sleeve and says, **"Daddy, I need to use the bathroom."**

Yuki nods, and Choco runs to the stalls to relieve herself. After she leaves the stall, she realizes that in the sudden rush, she does not remember how to go back to the audience. She walks around the tent aimlessly, and finds a door. Not sure if it is the right way, she enters anyway.

At the same time, an act has ended and Barney is back on the stage announcing, **"Okay, it's time for Mimi to show off her magic skills! Can I ask for a volunteer from the audience!?"**

Just then, Choco walks on the side of the stage, and realizes that she took a wrong turn. Barney notices Choco, so he runs to the side, and pulls her on the stage. **"Looks like we have a volunteer! The cute and cuddly CHOCO!!"**

Yuki then spits out his Pepsi and yells, **"WHAT THE F-"** then the band plays loudly blocking out anything else he was about to say.

Mimi comes out with a huge box with a curtain, and steps Choco inside. Before closing the curtain, she yells, **"I shall now make this little girl disappear in front of your very eyes!"** She then closes the curtain, spins the box around completely. Afterwards, Mimi opens the curtain and Choco is not inside, She is now behind the box appearing as if she had vanished.

Muffy is impressed and claps cheerfully. She then says, **"Wow, she really is amazing, right Yuki. . . Yuki?"** She then notices that Yuki is no longer sitting next to her. Thinking that he'll come back, she continues to watch the show.

As Yuki is going bananas looking for the entrance to the stage, Choco is juggling with some of the clowns. After a while, Yuki finds himself in the back of the stage where the crew is preparing a big event. As he searches, one of the workers stop him and asks, **"Are you here for the act?"**

**"What?"** asked Yuki.

**"Good you're late, get into the cage right now!"** the employee pushes Yuki into a huge cage and locks it. Then goes out to signal that they are ready.

Barney comes out to the stage and announces, **"Sorry that our final act is a bit late, we had trouble finding our man. Now that he is here, I shall introduce the final performance. Introducing, Kano and Simbah!"**

The curtain rises revealing the huge cage. Barney turns around and finds Yuki inside instead of Kano, demanding to be let out. Barney sweats nervously, but he tries to make the best of the act. **"Looks like Kano is still in the hospital, but no worries. We have a great replacement to show us a great performance. I'll introduce Yuki the Lion tamer!"**

Yuki shakes the bars and says, **"Hey, I thought I told you to let me out!. . . Wait, did he say Lion tamer?"** Then Yuki hears the growl of a vicious animal behind him. He turns around slowly and finds a huge lion in the cage with him.

**"Yuki!! Do your best!!"** yelled Muffy from the audience.

**"Muffy!! Don't just sit there!! Do something!!"** demanded Yuki.

The yelling upsets the lion called Simbah, and it starts to chase him. Choco looks around for anything to help her father. She quickly finds a whip and a stool inside the cage. The bars are wide enough for Choco to squeeze through, so she runs to her father's aid. The lion has Yuki pinned in a corner, but Choco grabs the whip and stool, and runs between them.

**"Choco, what are you doing here!! Get out!!"** yelled Yuki.

Choco ignores her father,and remains where she is. Choco then whips the ground yelling, **"Back Simbah! Back!!"** The determination and fearlessness in her eyes drives the lion back. The crowd is amazed and cheers for Choco.

Muffy claps and yells, **"Yay Choco!! Tame that lion!!"**

**"Muffy!! Who's side are you on!!??"** yelled Yuki realizing that Muffy still has not moved to help them.

Afterwards, the show is over. Yuki, Choco, and Muffy walk home by themselves. Yuki is exhausted after being chased by a lion. Choco and Muffy are happy, they had the best time of their lives. Yuki looks at Choco and asks, **"Choco, where did you learn how to do that back there? With the lion I mean."**

**"Saturday morning cartoons!"** cheered Choco.

Yuki drops Muffy off at the bar, and then walks home with Choco. They were silent for a while, until Choco asks, **"Daddy, can we go to the circus again, PLEASE."**

**"Absolutely not."** said Yuki. **"After that experience, I'll never go back to the circus again. I'll never want to see another circus ticket again."**

However a few minutes later, Yuki finds Celia, Lumina, Flora, and Nami standing right outside the gates to his farm. They each held up three circus tickets, and they all sing, **"Hey Yuki!! Wanna go to the circus with me?!"**

**"Oh no!"** complained Yuki as he passes out. Choco jumps for Joy as she sees that she'll go to the circus four more times, once with each of the other girls.

**To be continued.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

_Summer 15, 2003_

Yuki comes home exhausted after a long day of work. One of Yuki's cattle just gave birth, so he spent a lot of energy assisting in it's delivery. One of the chickens escaped the coop, so he spent a good thirty minutes chasing it around the farm. The sheep was also giving him a hard time while he was sheering the wool, jumping and running around nervously. The ducks gave him no trouble, but he was already exhausted long before them.

Yuki walks to the kitchen, sits on a dining room chair, and slams himself on the table. He takes a look at the clock, it's now 2:00 pm, far too early to rest yet. As he is catching his breath, he also thinks about what he wants to make for dinner. Choco hears her father hit the table, and jumps for joy. She runs out of her bedroom carrying Uma-Kun up to his side. She then pulls on his shirt to grab his attention. 

**"Daddy, Daddy! Can we go to the beach today?"** begged Choco.

Yuki turns and stares at her with a tired look in his eyes. **"Again? We've been to the beach three times this week already."**

Choco smiles and says, **"I know, but the beach is so much fun! I get to swim, I play with my ball, and Uma-Kun gets to help me build sand castles!"**

Yuki places a hand on Choco's head, and pats her gently. He then says, **"Choco, I'm sorry. But I had a hard long day at work today. I need to do a few more things like clean the house, and cook dinner. Why don't you just go around the valley and play instead?"**

**"By myself?"** asked Choco.

**"Of course not."** answered Yuki. **"You can go play with Kate and Hugh. They are about your age, and you really do get along with them. You should become good friends with them."**

**"Okay."** said Choco in a sad tone. Choco returns to her bedroom, and starts to pack some of her toys in her rucksack. She then waves at her father goodbye, and goes out to play.

Choco walks out of the farm, and takes the road that leads to Romana's Villa. As she walks, she notices Hugh dash past her. She stops, and watches him run to his mother and father who are waiting for him by their house. His father hits the stop watch and compliments on his improving speed. His mother hugs him on a job well done. 

Soon afterwards, Kate walks out of her house with her mother and father. They all walk past her holding hands like a happy family heading to the direction of Vesta's farm. Choco watches them walk away as they are all telling jokes and laughing cheerfully. Choco begins to feel a bit jealous and sad. She found her father, but she is still without her mother. 

**"Hi there kiddo!"** yelled Nami surprising Choco from behind.

Choco turns around and says, **"Hi lady!"**

Nami looks around and notices that Yuki is not with her. She then asks, **"Where's your dad? Are you here all by yourself?"**

**"Daddy is tired, and he wants to rest. He told me to play with the other kids, but they are playing with their mommy and daddy."** answered Choco.

Nami notices the sad look on her face. She couldn't help but to feel sorry for her. Yuki is a busy man, and he does try his best. But she knows that he is only one person, and Choco wants both a mother and a father. Yuki is stubborn, and refuses to date any of the girls for a reason none of them knows. 

Nami kneels down, and pats Choco on the head. She then says, **"Hey, wanna hang out with me? I'll treat you to something to drink, what do you say?"**

Choco looks up at Nami and nods cheerfully. Nami then takes her to the Blue Bar where they could relax and have a little fun. Griffin notices that he has guests, so he says, **"Welcome ladies. What can I get you today?"**

**"I'll have a stone oil. Chocolate milk for the kid."** said Nami.

**"Coming right up!"** said Griffin. A few moments later, Griffin returns with a strong drink in a martini glass for Nami, and a mug full of chocolate milk topped with whip cream and a cherry for Choco. Nami enjoys her drink sipping it slowly. Choco drinks her chocolate milk through a straw. 

After Nami finishes her drink, she stretches her arms and says, **"So, how is everything at home? Getting along with your dad?"** Choco nods as she continues to drink. **"That's great, Yuki is a responsible man and even though he doesn't show it too much, I'm sure he cares about you very much."**

Nami pokes at her empty martini glass for a minute. She is remembering the good times she had with Yuki within the last three years. **"Yuki is a really great guy. I came to live here not too long before Yuki moved into the farm. I was only supposed to be here for only a year, then I would leave like I would do everywhere else. I know that I'm not very feminine, and most of the guys treat me like another guy. But Yuki is different, he treats me like a woman. I always felt that I have a sporting chance with him, so instead of leaving, I decided to stay here. I keep hoping that maybe someday, Yuki will feel the same way I do."**

Nami notices that Choco is staring at her oddly. She laughs and says, **"What am I doing? You're still too young to understand what it means to fall head over heels for someone."** Nami slams on the table and says, **"Hey Griffin! Red Punch please!"**

Griffin takes a moment to prepare her red punch. It is served in a mug, and has less alcohol than the stone oil. Nami drinks the fruit flavored alcoholic beverage quickly, and hits the empty mug on the table. Choco then finishes her chocolate milk, and then eats the cherry. 

Nami looks at Choco and asks, **"So tell me. What is your mother like?"**

**"Mommy?"** asked Choco.

**"Oh yeah, I forgot. You don't remember her. How strange, a child who doesn't remember her own mother, even though you've lived with her for 10 years. Be that as it may, I am still curious about her. So, do you remember anything?"**

Choco shakes her head no. **"I don't know why, but I can't even remember what she looks like. I don't know why, but after I found daddy, I forgot about mommy. . ."**

Nami saw another sad look in Choco's face. She places an arm around Choco, and pulls her closer trying to make her feel better. **"Don't worry baby. I'm sure you'll remember soon enough. After all, you are still just a kid. Whatever happened in the past is over now. You're with friends now, and I'll protect you like if you are a member of my own family."**

Just like most of the other people in Forget-Me-Not Valley, Nami feels that Choco does remember her mother, but she refuses to talk about it. But Choco really cannot remember anything about her. She only remembers Yuki's face, and what little memories she has of her past. Unfortunately, none of what Choco tells anyone makes any sense, so everyone just smiles and wishes the best for her.

_Summer 16, 2003_

Choco walks out of her bedroom in the middle of the night. Her stomach is rumbling with hunger. She ate dinner, but she wants chocolate. Yuki told her that he is out of chocolates, but Choco knows that he has said that many times before. He always has a secret stash of chocolates hidden somewhere.

Quietly, Choco grabs a chair and climbs on the kitchen counter to search through the cupboards for chocolates. After some time, she finds nothing. She sits on the counter, and thinks for a moment.

**"Where did daddy hide the chocolates today?"** Choco asked herself. **"There is none in the kitchen, yesterday I checked in the TV room, but I found nothing. Where could daddy be hiding the chocolates?"**

Choco stares at the bedroom door to Yuki's room. She then feels that if there is anyplace where he would be hiding the chocolates, it has to be there. She opens the door slowly to avoid waking her father up. She then tip toes over to the night stand next to his bed, and opens the small drawer. Inside she found his stash of chocolates. She grabs a couple of bars, and closes the drawer slowly. But as she is about to leave, she finds Yuki's diary resting on top of the nightstand. 

She picks up the diary and whispers to herself, **"Daddy's diary? Every night before he goes to bed, he writes in it. He told me that I should never read it, so I better leave it alone. But. . ."** Choco becomes excited and yells, **"Maybe he wrote something about mommy!"**

Choco covers her mouth, and Yuki turns on his bed. Luckily, he does not wake up. Choco walks out slowly and returns to her bedroom. She jumps on her bed, and opens the diary starting with the latest entry. She doesn't read anything, but she skims through the pages looking for anything that might be a clue as to who is her mother. However, the earliest entry in the diary is Spring 5, 2000, the day Yuki moved into the farm.

She cannot find anything useful, so she closes the diary and returns to her father's room. She returns the diary to the place where she found it, and tip toes away. She wanted to leave, but she finds herself looking through Yuki's room for anything else that she could use instead. Quietly without waking her father, Choco finds Yuki's photo album. She walks out carrying the album with her, and creeps into her bedroom.

She checks all the photographs carefully. The more recent photos are of Yuki and the girls. One of the photos has Yuki standing next to Lumina practicing the piano. Another one has him in the bar having a drinking contest with some of the other guys. Muffy is in that photograph. Another photo has Yuki standing next to Nami with a huge fish that they caught together. Several photographs has Celia and Yuki planting crops together. And other Photos have Yuki volunteering in the dig site helping Carter and Flora.

As she flips the pages from the back to the front, she notices that one photograph is missing There is an empty space that has traces that a photograph was torn out. Choco has no clue why is the photograph missing, but since the empty space is in the middle of a group of photos of Yuki's first Summer Festival, she pays it no mind.

Choco continues to flip the pages, and finds photographs from before Yuki moved into Forget-Me-Not Valley. In many of those pictures, Yuki is by himself, or surrounded by people who Choco does not know. She then finds herself looking at the first page of the photo album. In that page, there is a large photograph of three people. Two of them are young adults, and between them is a ten year old child. 

One of the adults is a young woman in her early thirties. Choco is amazed at how much she resembles that woman. The hair color, eyes, and cheekbones are very similar to her own. Even the hairstyle matches her a bit, but the woman in the picture has longer hair. 

The man in the picture looks a lot like Yuki. But his hair has a darker color, and he has no hat. The child in the middle has the same blue hat that Yuki now wears. Seeing that many of the traits of both adults can be seen in the child, Choco assumes that the Child is Yuki when he was her age, and the two adults are his parents. She can also notice some stains on the picture that looks like teardrops. 

Choco doesn't know what happened to his parents, but judging by the photograph, he misses them very much. Even so, she doesn't find any clues about her own mother. She closes the photo album, and returns it to her father's bedroom. Before quitting, she searches the room quietly once again. As she searches, she finds another diary. So she quietly takes it back into her bedroom.

She opens the diary and takes a look inside, but she notices that it is empty. The diary is a spare in case that Yuki runs out of room in his old diary. Instead of returning the blank diary, she decides to keep it and write a diary of her own. She grabs a pencil from her rucksack and makes the first entry to her diary.

**Dear diary,**

**I want to be just like my daddy, so I want to write my thoughts just like he does. My name is Choco, and I am 10 years old. I live with my daddy, and my best friend Uma-Kun. My daddy works hard, and I promised him that I be a good girl and wait for him. But waiting at home is so boring. Daddy sometimes comes home tired, and can't play with me. But I love my daddy, and I want to stay here with him. But I also want to know who my mommy is too. People think that I keep my mommy a secret, but I really can't remember. Maybe one day, mommy and daddy could be together again like before, and I could have a family like the others do.**

Choco closes the diary, and hides it under her bed. She then goes to bed and falls asleep. She dreams about the day that her mother and father would play with her like they did before. Just like other nights, she can see Yuki's face clearly, but her mother's is only a blur. 

That morning, Choco wakes up to the smell of chocolate pancakes covered in chocolate syrup. She sits down at the table and waits to be served. As Yuki cooks, he says, **"Had a rough night last night Choco?"**

Choco yawns and says, **"I'm still a little tired."**

**"You wouldn't be so tired if you weren't poking around in my room in the middle of the night."** said Yuki.

**"How did you find out?"** asked Choco nervously.

**"I noticed that a few of my chocolate bars went missing this morning. Only you would do something like that."** answered Yuki.

Choco sighs in relief. She feels that Yuki did not find out that she has been looking through his other possessions last night. So she pretends that nothing else happened and said, **"I was just hungry daddy. I'm sorry."**

**"I'll go buy you some chocolate today, but promise me that you won't enter my room without my permission again."** said Yuki.

**"Okay!"** answered Choco. 

Then Yuki places a stack of pancakes in front of her. He then says, **"Good girl. Now I have a lot of work to do today, and I will not be home until late. Try to play with the other kids, or hang out with Muffy, Lumina, Celia, Nami, or Flora."**

Choco nods. After breakfast, Yuki grabs his rucksack and leaves to do his job. Choco grabs her bag of toys and takes another stroll around the valley. As she walks around, Hugh walks up to her from behind nervously. He has a flower hidden behind his back. 

**"Um. . . Choco?"** said Hugh.

Choco turns around and says, **"Hi Hugh! What's up, wanna play?"**

**"Actually, I um. . ."** Hugh reveals the pink catmint flower to her and says. **"I have a present for you! I um. . . I really like you Choco!"**

Choco accepts the flower and says, **"Thank you Hugh. I like you too!"** Hugh's face turned red feeling bashful that Choco said that she liked him. Choco continues, **"I like you, Kate, daddy, and the five ladies that follows my daddy around."** Choco runs off and says, **"Let me show my present to daddy! Be right back!"**

**"Wait!"** yelled Hugh. But Choco ran so fast that she did not hear him. Hugh scratches his head and says, **"I knew it. She didn't understand what I meant by _'like'_."**

Hugh then felt a homicidal aura behind him. He turns around and finds Kate behind him with the most angriest look on her face. She then jumps on him, knocking him down on the ground beating him up yelling, **"You two timer! I thought it was me you like?"**

**"When did I ever say that I liked you?"** asked Hugh.

**"Shut it! You know that you liked me, but now you like her instead! I'll never forgive you for this!"** yelled Kate.

**To Be Continued.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

_Summer 24, 2003_

The Fireworks Festival is held today. On this day, the pyrotechnic twins Kassey and Patrick show off their skills by firing fireworks for Forget-Me-Not Valley. Everyone in Forget-Me-Not Valley waits at the beach and talks until the fireworks display starts. The fireworks can be seen for miles away, even Mineral Town residents awaits by their beaches to see the fireworks on this day.

Yuki normally hangs out with the five girls on this day. But now that he has Choco, the others feel that he should spend time with her as a small family. It is now 8:00pm, one hour away from watching the colorful fireworks. Yuki waits patiently for the fireworks to begin, but Choco is not as patient as her father. Because Choco gets bored very easily, she becomes restless and jumpy.

**"Daddy, we've been here for three hours already, when are the fireworks gonna start?"** whined Choco while tugging on her father's shirt.

**"In another hour, they are still getting things ready. Why don't you hang out with Kate and Hugh?"** asked Yuki.

**"They are spending time with their mommies and daddies."** said Choco. **"Can't you do anything to hurry it up?"**

Yuki shakes his head no, and Choco crosses her arms and pouts. All of the adults are talking about things that Choco does not understand, and the other younger children are with their own families. She looks around to see if she could find something that could keep her busy until the fireworks starts. She looks to the east, and notices something happening deep in the forest on a hill.

Choco can not take the boredom any longer, and wishes to see what is gong on in the forest. She walks up to Yuki and asks, **"Daddy, I need to use the bathroom. Can I go back home for a minute?"**

Yuki nods and says, **"Fine, but make sure you come back soon."** Choco then skips off back home, but as soon as she notices that she is out of view, she runs into the forest to see what is going on.

Back in the hut, the Witch Princess walks out of her bathroom after taking a shower. She has two towels, one wrapped around her body and the other one drying her blond hair. Since everyone is at the beach, she feels that it's a good time to sleep in early. She sometimes has trouble sleeping because of Lumina practicing her piano at night. As she walks around the hut, she wonders what is happening in the Valley, especially with Choco running around.

She walks up to the crystal ball, and places her hand on it. The ball glows, and she sees Choco walking through the forest. **"What is that girl doing?"** asked the Witch Princess as she puts on her purple tunic. Rather than going to sleep, she decides to stay up and watch her for a while.

Deep in the forest, Kassey and Patrick are building a huge stand for the rocket tubes. The tubes will launch the rockets into the direction that they are pointing at. The tubes are pointing up, so that the fireworks would shoot up into the air safely.

Patrick wipes the sweat off his forehead and says, **"Whew! We are finally done building the stand for this year's Fireworks Festival. This is going to be quite a show, these are going to be our best rockets that we ever made!"**

Kassey shakes the stand, and notices that it is slightly wobbly. **"I don't know. You think this is safe? What if this thing fell over?"**

Patrick walks over to Kassey, and nudges him, **"Don't worry so much. The rockets are shooting up, so there shouldn't be any reason this thing would tip over. Besides, we are pyrotechnics not metal smiths. If Cody was here, he could have helped us, but he's at home with the flu."** Patrick walks off and continues, **"You coming brother? I want to go chat with the others before we light this candle!"**

Kassey checks the stand once again, and feels that Patrick is right. So he catches up to his brother and says, **"Hey Pat! You know, Lumina is looking pretty fine these days!"**

**"I agree with you brother!"** said Patrick. **"But Lumina always did look pretty, but these days, she's even more gorgeous than she was before!"**

After leaving the site, Choco finally arrives at the scene. She takes a look around to see if anyone is there, but she finds nobody. She circles around the large platform looking up at the tubes where the fireworks will be shot out of. Not too long after she arrived, she finds a long fuse and a box of matches.

**"Wow, this must be where they light the fireworks! But no wonder they never started, nobody is here to light them."** Choco then grabs the box of matches and lights a match. **"Well, if nobody is here, then I'll do it myself!"**

Choco lights the end of the fuse, and watches it sparkle for a moment. She doesn't want to miss the fireworks, so she begins to run back to the beach. But she is looking back at the fuse as she runs, and does not pay attention where she is going. She crashes into one of the legs of the stand, and she falls to the ground. The stand wobbles dangerously, and the immense weight causes the platform to collapse on it's side. The tubes are no longer pointing to the air, now they are pointing to the west. The direction where the beach is, and all the residents of Forget-Me-Not Valley are waiting.

Choco panics, and tries to move the stand. However, she is too small and the stand weighs far too much for her to move. She then tries to put out the fuse. But no matter what she tries, the fuse continues to burn. The only thing she could do is stand there and watch helplessly unable to do anything.

**"Oh no!"** panicked the Witch Princess. She then covers her eyes so that she doesn't watch the possible nightmare that is about to happen.

Back at the beach, the residents of the Valley continue to chat unaware what is happening not too far away. Soon enough, Patrick and Kassey arrives at the beach to join the rest of the community. But only moments after they arrive, a rocket flies just over everyone's head. The rocket lands on the other side of the beach on top of a dune. It explodes sending sand flying all over the place.

**"What the hell is going on?!"** yelled Muffy.

**"Incoming!"** screamed Patrick pointing at the other rockets that are headed their way.

The villagers panic, and start running in random directions. One by one, rockets land on the beach sending sand flying through the air, the dock setting boats and other wooden objects on fire, and in the water where they are put out. Choco ducks and covers, the sound of the rockets are frightening her and she can only imagine what might be happening at the beach.

From Mineral town, everyone waits patiently at their beach for the Fireworks Festival to start unaware of what is going on. Popuri and Kai are together in Moon Mountain sitting close together. Just before they are about to kiss, Popuri notices some odd lights coming from the beaches of Forget-Me-Not Valley. She points out and asks, **"What is going on out there?"**

Kai grabs the binoculars, and watches everyone run around in panic. He can see rockets exploding in the sand sending colorful sparks in random direction. He takes off the binoculars and says, **"Call me stupid, but it looks like Forget-Me-Not Valley is at war!"**

After a good 20 minutes, the beach quiets down. The villagers regroups and checks for injuries. Everyone is covered in sand and soot, but nobody is hurt. They take a good look around, everything is either destroyed or on fire. As the villagers try to control the fires, Kassey hits Patrick on his head.

**"I told you that the stand was too unstable!"** yelled Kassey.

Patrick hits him back and yells, **"You moron, none of this happened because of the stupid platform!"**

Nami hits both of them and yells, **"Okay, which one of you idiots lit the fireworks!"**

**"We didn't light the fireworks when we left, I swear."** said Patrick while rubbing his head.

Kassey counts with his fingers and says, **"That's odd, I only counted 49 rockets that were shot. I could have sworn that we loaded 50."**

**"The last one was probably a dud."** said Patrick.

Choco checks the stand that was knocked over, and pokes the only tube that didn't go off. The tube suddenly fires a rocket sending Choco flying back. As the villagers try to clean up the mess, they fail to notice the rocket flying towards them until it comes very close. When they finally notice the rocket, everyone runs off in different directions again except one person. Lumina stands there watching the rocket come closer directly at her. She is so frightened that she is unable to move like a deer staring at the headlights of a car.

**"Lumina! Get out of the way!"** screamed Yuki while running to her aid. He is able to push Lumina out of the path of the rocket, but he gets hit instead. The rocket hits Yuki in the back of his shoulder, and explodes on contact sending him flying through the air. He lands on the sand, he survives but in severe pain.

Lumina gets up, and looks at Yuki who is holding his arm. His blood can be seen staining the sand below him. She runs up to him yelling his name as loud as she could. The back of his shirt is burnt, a deep wound is on his shoulder, and some of the skin around the wound is burnt.

Everyone gathers around Yuki to see if he's okay. Lumina Yells, **"Yuki! Please talk to me! Are you going to be okay?"**

Yuki struggles to stand, but he can barely move his right arm. He says,** "I'll be fine, but are you okay Lumina?"**

**"Don't worry about me! You're hurt!"** yelled Lumina.

Yuki ignores Lumina, and faces the rest of the villagers. He then asks, **"Is everyone else all right!?"** Everyone nods. Yuki then faces Patrick and Kassey and asks, **"What in the world happened?"**

**"We don't know."** Said Kassey. **"We didn't light the fireworks when we left, they just went off on their own."**

**"Where is Choco?"** asked Celia.

**"Choco went back home not too long before this started. She should be fine."** struggled Yuki.

**"Let's go back to the platform, fireworks don't just light themselves."** said Patrick.

Everyone follows them to the site where the stand is set up. Lumina helps Yuki walk with the others, but he is so slow, he drags along in the back of the group. In only a short walk, they arrive at the platform. The villagers all gasp as they see Choco still there trembling in fear.

There is a moment of silence before Flora steps forward and asks, **"Choco, what happened here?"**

Choco finally looks up, and notices that everyone has found her there. She already knows that she is in trouble and no excuse could get her out of it. She gets up and tries to explain, **"I'm sorry, it was an accident. I just wanted to see some fireworks and-"** She gasps as she sees Yuki walk into the scene with Lumina. She quickly notices that he is injured, and knows that it was her own fault.

Yuki looks back at Choco in shock. **"Choco, you did this?"** he asked.

Choco continues to tremble, she doesn't know what to tell him. Yuki also doesn't know what to say to her, he is angry, shocked, ashamed, embarrassed, and sad all at once. The only thing he does is walk away from Lumina, and grabs Choco's arm. He then takes her back home where they can just sleep away the disaster. Not a word was spoken the whole trip home.

The Witch Princess finally uncovers her eyes. Using her crystal ball, she checks the status of all the villagers. No fatalities, but she does notice that Yuki is injured. She falls on the floor and sighs in relief. "Wow, that was intense!" said the Witch Princess. "Choco is here to trouble Yuki, not kill him. The last thing I need is to have someone's death on my shoulder. Maybe I took things a bit too far? Oh well, as long as he lives until my plan is complete, there is nothing to worry about."

**To Be Continued.**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

_Summer 25, 2003_

Choco wakes up in the morning feeling guilty from what she has done the night before. Last night, she had a nightmare about her father dying in the beach. The nightmare scares her, but she is at least relieved to know that it was only a dream. Yuki may be injured, but not seriously enough where it would threaten his life.

After changing into her usual clothes, she walks out of her bedroom holding Uma-Kun to start the day. But as soon as she walks out, she notices her father sitting at the dining table. There are a lot of paperwork that he is looking through. The look on Yuki's face sends chills down her spine. She has no idea how he is feeling at the moment, but she wishes to avoid it at all costs.

Choco feels that he has yet to notice her, so she tries her best to sneak out of the house. She believes that it would be a good idea to give him some time alone. Just as she is about to touch the handle of the front door, she hears, **"Choco, where are you going?"** She turns around to see her father looking at her in a very serious and upset way. **"Sit down, we have to talk."** said Yuki.

Choco hesitates, but she slowly walks to the table, and takes a seat. The bandages around Yuki's right arm, shoulder, and back makes her look down in shame. For a while, there is silence. Not a word are exchanged between them. Yuki is still looking through paperwork, and Choco has yet to find the courage to say anything.

After a while, Choco takes a deep breath and says, **"Daddy, are you mad at me?"**

Yuki places the paperwork that he is holding down, and looks at Choco for a moment. **"No, I am not mad at you."** Choco takes a sigh of relief, but it is too soon to feel relieved. **"After all, you did lie to me, put an entire village in danger, completely ruined a festival, caused damage to the beach, hit me with a rocket, completely embarrassed and humiliated me, put the farm in severe debt, and given the word dangerous a whole new meaning."** Yuki slams his hand on the table which makes Choco cringe with fear. **"I'm not mad, I'm FURIOUS!!"**

Yuki places his hand on the huge stack of papers and says, **"Do you have any idea what these are? Complaints from the nearby villages and cities including Mineral Town demanding why was the Fireworks Festival canceled. Not to mention bills for damages to the beach, medical bills for my arm, and I'm also billed for the cost of the rockets you shot!"**

Choco sniffles, and tears are building up in her eyes. But Yuki continues. **"Choco, why did you lie to me? You told me that you were just going to use the bathroom. But instead, you went off into the woods, and caused the biggest disaster in Forget-Me-Not Valley history! And do you have any idea what you almost did? You could have killed somebody! And since I can't use my right arm for a while, I can't work on the farm. I had to hire Takakura to do the work for me until I get better."**

Choco is trying her hardest not to cry, but Yuki making her feel guilty all over again is not helping. Tears are dripping on her dress as she tries to hold them back. Yuki looks at her and says, **"Stop crying already. Crying is not going to make the problem go away. You're not a little kid anymore, you're 10 years old, it's time to grow up already!"**

Silence returns to the room for a moment. Yuki becomes frustrated and says, **"Aren't you going to say something Choco?"**

**"I'm sorry daddy. I didn't meant to. . . I'm sorry."** said Choco in a sad and weepy tone.

**"Sorry is not going to fix anything."** said Yuki.

Choco can not hold in her guilt anymore. So she grabs Uma-Kun, and runs off. Just then, Muffy walks in to see how Yuki is doing. Choco runs past her nearly bumping into her. Muffy notices Choco's tears on the ground. Knowing what Yuki must have done, she walks up to him with a frown on her face.

**"Yuki, what happened?"** asked Muffy.

Yuki looks at Muffy with an exhausted look on his face and snaps, **"What do you think I did? I yelled at her. Isn't every parent supposed to yell at their kid when they did something wrong?"**

Muffy becomes upset at Yuki's cold words and yells, **"Yuki! Didn't you just see her running off like that! Aren't you going off and look for her?"**

**"No I'm not!"** yelled Yuki. Muffy is shocked to hear those words come out of his mouth in such a careless manner. The entire time she knew him, he is always kind and gentle. But this is the first time she has seen him act this cruel. **"Maybe Choco will remember where her mother is, and go back to live with her. Look at me, I am not fit to be a father."**

**"If Choco knew where her mother is, don't you think that she would have told you already?"** answered Muffy. She takes a deep breath and tries her best to calm down, and says, **"Listen Yuki. I know that you're upset at her and everything, but she is just a little girl. What she did was only an accident, everyone makes mistakes sometime in their life."**

Yuki stares at Muffy awkwardly and says, **"Oh really? So, when was the last time you injured your father, and put the lives of an entire village in danger. Maybe it's a girl thing, cause I sure don't remember doing that when I was her age."**

**"Yuki! You're not being very fair about this!"** yelled Muffy.

**"Fair?!"** yelled Yuki. **"Let me tell you something about fair! I have never in my life touched a woman, and I still end up with a kid! And on top of that, everyone expects me to be a good father! You still call that fair?!"**

Yuki's sudden outburst shocks Muffy. Yuki sees how upset he is making her feel, so he takes a deep breath and says, **"I'm sorry about that. I didn't mean to yell at you, but seriously. I'm no father. I can't even protect a ten year old kid. I'm just a stupid failure."**

Muffy sighs, and walks up to Yuki. She places a hand o his left arm, and tries to comfort him. **"I understand how you must feel, but-"**

**"No, you don't."** interrupted Yuki. **"If you did, maybe you wouldn't be trying so hard to get me to like you. I'm not a family man, and I'll never will be. I just want to be alone."**

**"But, what about Choco. What if she never comes back?"** asked Muffy.

**"Let her do what she wants. If she wants to come back, she will. Otherwise, she can just go back home to her mother."**

Yuki's words pierces her heart. She once thought Yuki was a great guy who takes responsibility for his actions. But she feels that maybe it's not as true as she believes it to be. Muffy starts to walk out of the house. But just before she reaches the door, she says, **"If you don't want Choco anymore, then fine. I'll go find her myself, and she can come live with me. I don't know who her mother is either, and I really don't even care. After all, if she wanted to live with her mother, she wouldn't have come here on her own."**

Muffy then ran off to look for Choco. Yuki just wait in the house in case she came back on her own. At 6:00pm, Choco still does not come home. By this time, Yuki already gives up hope that she will come back at all. Muffy believes that Choco left Forget-Me-Not Valley so she left the valley to the nearby villages and cities to look for her.

Yuki walks into Choco's bedroom. If she isn't coming back home, he feels that he might as well pack her things and send them to her as soon as he learns where she went. Many of her toy's are scattered all over the floor. Like many kids, Choco hates to clean her room. So Yuki places all of the toys that are on the floor on the bed where he would just pack them. He reaches under the bed to gather all the toys that have fallen underneath.

After pulling out several toys, Yuki grabs on to something unusual under the bed. He pulls it out, and finds a diary. **"Hey, Isn't this mine?"** asked Yuki. He opens the diary, and sees that the diary is not the one he has been using. But rather, it's the spare he stored in his room in case the one he is using runs out of paper.

He reads the first entry from Summer 16. The part that shocks him the most is the sentence that Choco wrote, **"People think that I'm keeping my mommy a secret, but I really can't remember."** Like many people in the valley, Yuki also thought that she has been keeping her mother a secret. He never imagined that Choco may be telling the truth. It makes no sense to him, but if Choco has been keeping it a secret, she would have said that in her diary.

Yuki reads the next entry. It says:

**Dear Diary,**

**Today, daddy promised to buy me chocolates if I promised not to go in his room without telling him anymore. I love chocolates, and Daddy loves chocolates too! Daddy knows how to make the best chocolate stuff like chocolate pancakes, chocolate cake, chocolate cookies, chocolate milkshake, and other chocolate treats. I wanna learn how to make them too! I hope daddy can teach me soon.**

**Oh, today Hugh gave me a flower as a present. I went home to show daddy my present, and he put it in a little glass cup so that it can live a little longer. But when I went back to Hugh, he didn't look so well. He was a bit dirty, and his eye had a black bruise on it. I wonder what happened to him, he wouldn't tell me. Oh well, I hope he's ok.**

Yuki smiles as he reads that entry. He feels bad that Hugh tried to confess his feelings to Choco, but she's not as bright as other kids her age. Rather than reading the rest of the diary, he skips to the latest entry she wrote last night.

**Dear Diary,**

**I did something really bad today. I wanted to watch fireworks with my daddy today, but I was bored of waiting. So I went to tell the people to start the fireworks early so that me and daddy can watch them together. But nobody was there, so I lit the fireworks by myself. But then the big metal thing fell over, and I hurt my daddy. Daddy never said anything, but I know he is mad at me. I wonder if he will hate me now? Maybe he will never forgive me? I don't want daddy to hate me. I didn't want to hurt daddy, I just wanted us to watch the fireworks together. I don't know where mommy is, so I want to be with daddy forever. I don't know what to do.**

The blank space in the bottom of the page are still moist. Choco was crying as she wrote that entry. Remembering how he yelled at her earlier that day made him remember a time when he was Choco's age. His mother was yelling at his father who had just lost his job back in the city. They both were unaware that Yuki was watching them argue. The words that were spoken are those that he will never forget.

**"How could you lose your job!?"** yelled Yuki's mother. **"Do you have any idea how hard it is to look for work these days!? What are we going to do about the bills, or food!? Do you want our son to starve?"**

**"I'm sorry."** said Yuki's father.

**"Sorry is not going to fix anything!!"** Those words echoed in Yuki's mind for a while. At that moment, Yuki felt guilty that he ever screamed those word to Choco. Choco may be troublesome, but she is not a bad girl.

Yuki drops the diary, and runs out to look for Choco. But the problem is that he has no idea where she went. It has been a long time since she ran off, so there is no measure on how far she could have gone. But Yuki now knows that Choco doesn't know where her mother is, so going home is not an option.

**"Let's see, If I was Choco, where would I be?"** said Yuki as he randomly walked around the Valley. He then remembers that time when Choco was brushing her teeth, and she was doing it the same way Yuki does it. **"I may not know Choco very well, but I do know that Choco has very similar habits that I do. Now where would I go at a time like this?"**

Yuki remembers a time when his parents were arguing, so he ran off and hid below anything. In forget-Me-Not Valley, there are few places to hide. The only place Yuki could think of is the beach where boats can be found. He knows the odds are against him, but he decides to check anyway. When he arrives at the beach, all he could see is a huge disaster that just happened. There are a few overturned boats that have been abandoned years before Yuki arrived in Forget-Me-Not Valley. As he walks past them, he could hear the crying of a ten year old child under one of them.

He uses his left arm to try to raise the boat. It is much heavier than it really is because he cannot use his right arm to lift, but he still is able to lift it high enough to see what's underneath. Just as he thought, he found Choco.

She stops crying as soon as she notices the boat she is hiding under is being lifted. She looks up and sees Yuki looking back at her. **"Hey there!"** said Yuki. But Choco does not answer. **"Can I come in?"** asked Yuki. Choco still does not respond, so he lets himself in anyway.

Yuki and Choco are both sitting under the boat. There is a hole above them to allow enough light for them to see each other. **"Nice hiding spot. When I was your age, I used to hide under things like this when I was sad too."**

Choco rubs the tears out of her eyes and asks, **"Daddy, do you hate me?"**

**"Of course I don't."** answered Yuki. **"I know that I yelled at you and everything, but I only did it because I was worried about you."**

**"You were worried about me?"** asked Choco.

**"Of course I was. I know I said that I was mad about the bills and the complaints and everything. But I was mostly angry because I was scared."**

**"Scared? Of what? The rockets?"** asked Choco.

**"No Choco. It had nothing to do with the rockets. I was scared because you might have gotten hurt out there. Playing with fireworks is really dangerous, and I wouldn't be able to forgive myself in you were the one who got hurt. I was glad that you are safe, but at the same time, I was scared because I felt that I could have done something to prevent what happened yesterday. Choco, I'm really sorry if I hurt your feelings when I yelled at you."**

**"But daddy, I thought that-"**

**"Never mind what I said. I shouldn't have said that back at home. You did apologize to me, but instead I thew it back at your face."**

Yuki's arm is starting to bother him. Choco notices it, so she sits closer to Yuki and says, **"Daddy, I'm sorry about your arm. I promise not to do it again."**

**"It's okay. Doctor hardy says I can go back to work in about a week or two."** Yuki pushes the boat off of them, and takes Choco by the hand. **"Let's go home. I'll make you a chocolate milkshake."**

Choco nods happily, and they both return home. After Yuki serves the milkshake, he calls Griffin to find out where Muffy is. Griffin gives Yuki a number where he can reach Muffy. He calls her and tells her that he has found Choco. Muffy yells at him as loud as she could, Even Choco can hear her from where she is sitting.

**"Yes, yes Muffy, I think I do have an idea how worried you were. . . Don't worry, she is at home with me having a drink. . . Okay fine, I'll make this up to you, how about I make you an apple pie? You would like that, right? . . . A date? Come on, we're going to get into that again. . . Okay fine, I'll go on one date with you, are you happy now? . . . Okay, call me when you get home, bye!"**

Yuki hangs up the phone and walks up to Choco. **"I just finished talking to Muffy, guess where she is? In the third next town from here looking for you."**

**"Really?"** asked Choco.

**"You may not know it, but you are a very popular girl Choco. Not just Muffy, but everyone in the valley cares about you very much!"** said Yuki. **"Now finish your shake, and go to bed, since I can't work for a while, we can spend a lot of time getting to know each other. Okay?"**

**"Okay!"** cheered Choco. She then quickly finishes off her shake, and tucks herself into bed hardly able to wait for the next day to come.

The Witch Princess smiles after watching the event between Yuki and Choco. **"Looks like they made up. Good, it works perfectly into my plan. The more he cares about her, the more miserable he'll become in the end. Enjoy your little peace Yuki, it may not last very long!"** The Witch Princess then lets out a wicked laugh. What sort of plan does she have in store for Yuki and Choco?

To be continued.


	12. Chapter 12

_In memory of the loved ones that are no longer with us._

**Chapter 12**

_Fall 3, 2003_

Choco wakes up in the morning to greet the crisp Fall morning air. She stretches her arms, then gets ready for breakfast. She grabs Uma-Kun, and walks out of the bedroom to see her father cooking in the kitchen. Yuki is still injured, so he is cooking with only one arm. However, something is different about today. Yuki is already done preparing breakfast, but he is still cooking. The smell of the dish Yuki is making is cabbage rolls, she only hopes that it's not for her since she hates vegetables.

**"Daddy, what are you doing?"** asked Choco.

**"Oh Choco. Good your awake. Go ahead and eat breakfast, then take a bath. I left you some clothes in the bathroom, so get changed. Today is a very important day. We are going to see your grandfather today."**

Choco became excited to hear that she will meet another member of her family. She sits on the table, and eats the chocolate pancakes that are on the table. She then rushes to the bathroom to take a bath and brush her teeth. However, the clothes Yuki left out are different than her usual clothes. Choco finds a black dress, black stockings, and black shoes. She didn't know why she has to wear such dark and creepy clothing, but she puts them on anyway.

She walks out of the bathroom, and finds her father also wearing all black as well. The cabbage rolls are packed to go, Choco is confused, but relieved that the rolls are not for her. Yuki then brushes Choco's hair, and uses a black ribbon to make a small ponytail, like the way Choco always has it. After he is done, Yuki grabs Choco's hand and walks with her out of the farm. This is the first time that Choco has known Yuki to not wear his blue hat outside the house.

They take a very familiar path outside of Forget-Me-Not Valley. Choco notices that Yuki has a serious face, but not an angry or upset kind of look. Almost a proud look on his face, like if he has accomplished something. They keep walking down that path until they reach a lonely grave. Yuki lets go of Choco's hand, and walk up to the grave alone. He rests his rucksack on the ground, and takes out the cabbage rolls to rest them in front of the grave stone. He then takes out some incense out of the rucksack, and leaves them on top of the gravestone. It's hard for him to light the incense with only one arm, but he is able to manage. Yuki finally kneels down, closes his eyes, and starts to pray silently.

Choco looks around looking for her grandfather, but finds nobody else but them. She then walks up to Yuki and asks, **"Daddy, where is grandpa?"**

Yuki opens his eyes and answers, **"He's right here. He's resting in peace right now."**

Choco looks at the grave, and notices the name carved into it. The last name matches Yuki's and her own. **"You mean, grandpa died?"** she asked.

**"Sadly yes. He built the farm that we live in right now. It's like a gift that he left us."** Yuki looks at Choco and says, **"Why don't you pray with me?"**

**"How do I pray?"** asked Choco.

**"Just put your hands together, and close your eyes. Speak with your heart, and he will hear you. At least that's what he told me when I was younger."**

Choco closes her eyes, and starts to pray for her grandfather. As she prays, a tear moistens her cheek. She was looking forward to seeing her grandfather, but now she knows that she can't. After a few minutes, Yuki and Choco are done praying. Yuki stands up, and takes a long look at the grave.

**"You know, I sometimes wonder what would it be like if he was still alive. I mean he would kill me if he found out that I have a daughter at my age, but I'm sure he would have had a lot of fun with you. After all, you are a member of the family."**

A tear fell from Yuki's face. Choco looks up at him and asks, **"Daddy, what's wrong?"**

Yuki sighs and says, **"Choco, you know the other girls like me and everything. They want to go out with me, probably marry me. And start a family with me. But I never wanted to have a family of my own. I never told anyone why, do you want to know?"** Choco nods. **"It's because you can't lose something you don't have."**

Choco looks at Yuki again, his face looks very sad, almost like if he's going to cry. Yuki continues, **"Choco, let me tell you s story. When I was your age, I used to have a happy family. I had a loving mother, and a hard working father. They were the greatest parents anyone could ever have. I always thought they were going to be with me forever. But that happiness ended too quickly.**

**Atland fell in a recession, and dad lost his job. Since then, mom and dad argued a lot. Dad tried his best to get another job, but it was just too hard. Mom eventually found a job, but that only made the problems worse. Mom was working, but dad didn't know how to cook or clean. Mom would come home, and complain that the house was not clean, or that the food was burnt. Eventually, it lead to a divorce.**

**Dad still needed to find a job, so he asked a friend for help. Takakura told him about an empty lot in Forget-Me-Not Valley that he could use to build a farm. So dad got a loan, and he built the farm. The problem is that Atland is too far away from Forget-Me-Not Valley. If he left, we would never get to see him again. But he needed to work, so he had no choice but to leave.**

**I thought that things would get better from that moment, but it didn't. Mom started to miss dad too much. Even the letters we got every week was not enough to make mom happy. She begged and pleaded for him to come back to Atland, and work out their problems. But dad needed to work. Mom was always so sad, that she eventually fell ill. She died when I was only 14 years old.**

**Dad came to Atland to attend the funeral. He cried so much that day, he felt responsible for her death. But even then, he couldn't stay in Atland, he still needed to work. Luckily, I was old enough to live on my own. Dad sent me enough money to live and study. But as the years passed, the amount of money dad was sending me grew and grew. I thought the farm was doing good, and that he was making a lot of money. Well, technically that was true, but not exactly. Dad was so stressed from mom's death that he worked harder every year to take his mind off of the guilt. Because he worked harder, he made a lot of money off crops and animals.**

**But then the accident happened, dad didn't survive. That's when I came to Forget-Me-Not Valley for the first time. It was early Spring, and a lot of people cried at dad's funeral. I remember it like it was only yesterday. After the funeral, I decided to run the farm in his place. But being here always reminded me of what I no longer have. I lost the only family I'll ever have. It just hurts too much to lose everything, and there was nothing that I could have done about it. So I made the ultimate decision, I decided not to start a family, and remain single forever.**

**I've been terrified that one day, my wife would die on me. Or maybe something might happen to my child. Or even worse, something were to happen to me, and I pass that hurt to someone else. Instead of going through all of that, I decided the best thing was to be alone forever. I chose that path because I know that if I lose another family, I'm going to lose my mind.**

**Choco, I don't know how you came to me. I have no idea who gave birth to you. And I have no idea what happened to your mother. But what matters is that you are here now. I may not be the best father for you, but I will do my best for you."**

Choco begins to cry uncontrollably. Yuki kneels down and asks, **"What's wrong, why are you crying?"**

Choco runs up to Yuki and embraces him. As she cries, she yells, **"Daddy! Please promise that you won't die! I don't want you to go away! Please, you are the only one I have left! Please promise me that you will stay with me forever! I don't want to lose you!"**

Yuki pushes Choco back, and looks at her. He wipes the tears from her eyes and says, **"Choco. . . I am sorry, but that is a promise I cannot make. I can't decide when I am going to live or die, it's just a part of life."** Choco continues to cry. Yuki thinks for a moment and says, **"Hey, please don't be upset. How about I'll make you two promises instead, would you like that?"** Choco stops crying, but tears still falls from her eyes. She then nods, and Yuki says, **"Okay, this is my first promise. I promise to take care of myself better. I won't eat chocolates anymore, I'll eat healthy foods. I'll work out, and keep in shape. I'll do my best to live long enough to be a very old man. What do you say?"**

Choco nods, and embraces Yuki once again. As he holds her in his arms he says, **"Now for the second promise. I promise I will never let anything happen to you. I will protect you until the day that I die. Just please don't do anything dangerous again."**

Yuki and Choco continues to weep in front of the grave. Little did they know, the Witch Princess is watching them from her hut in her crystal ball. As she watched them share tender moments, she remembers a story of her own that makes her shed some tears. A story about the time she lost everything that mattered to her.

The Witch Princess remembers a time when she was a 10 year old child. Her mother and father were both still alive in those days. During those days, her name was just Princess. Her parents named her that because she was the only child they are allowed to have, so she was their little princess. Forget-Me-Not Valley did not exist yet. Instead, there was a town where hundreds of people used to live.

The witch Princess lived in the same hut that she lives in now. One day, she was just lying on the floor reading one of her father's books on alchemy. Then her came into the house after a long day of work, and found her in her room reading. Curious to know what she was reading, he walked up to her, and sat down. He then asked, **"What are you reading Princess?"**

**"It's a book about alchemy. It's very interesting."** said Princess.

Her father caressed her dirty blond hair with his left hand and says, **"I'm impressed that you can even understand it. Alchemy is not something anyone can just pick up."**

Princess looked up at her father and says, **"Dad, what's alchemy?"**

**"Alchemy is an art where you use spiritual energy and transmutation circles to break down matter, and turn it into something else."** said her father. **"I used to be a master alchemist before you were born."**

**"You can't use alchemy anymore?"** asked Princess.

Her father raises his right arm, but his right hand was missing. As he looks at it, he said, **"Alchemy may be a blessing, but it's also a curse. Because people fear something they do not understand, people who use alchemy are labeled as witches and warlocks. I wanted to have a child, but your mother couldn't have one. I gave up my right hand so that your mother could have a child. Without my right hand, I cannot use alchemy. But I feel that it's a fair trade. Your mother and I now have a beautiful daughter."**

Princess stands up and announces, **"Well, I want to learn alchemy! That way, I can be just like you dad!"**

Her father embraces her and begs, **"Please, promise me that you will not practice alchemy."**

**"But why?"** she asked confused by his reaction.

**"Because I love you. I gave up alchemy to have a child. I don't want anything happening to you because of that. Just promise me, okay?"**

Princess looked at her father's serious face. She is not sure why he is acting that way, but she nods and says, **"Okay dad, I promise."**

Even though she promised not to practice alchemy, she continued to read the books. But several days after that, something terrible happened. It was the middle of the night, and Princess was sleeping on her bed. Her mother rushed into the room, and woke her up. She wanted to ask what is going on, but her mother just silenced her, and carried her into a hidden room. She begged her to be quiet, and closes the room shut.

Suddenly, Princess hears a ponding at the front door. It wasn't long until it broke down, and a rush of people stormed in. A voice of a stranger demands, **"Alchemist Richard! You are charged with the practice of forbidden alchemy!You know what the penalty is for this sort of crime!"**

**"I don't know what you're talking about!"** said the voice of Princess' father. **"I have not practiced any alchemy in ten years!"**

The stranger continues, **"Where is the demon child. We know she is here!"**

**"There is no demon child in our home, please leave!"** yelled Princess' mother.

The stranger is not convinced. **"Search the house! I want every square inch of this place searched!"**

Princess could not see anything, but she could hear things being thrown around, glass breaking, and metals clashing. Luckily, Princess could not be found, the room was too hidden. One of the man's soldiers returned to the stranger and said, **"We cannot find the child sir!"**

**"Looks like it escaped before we got here. I want a full search performed around the town!"** said the stranger.

**"What about the alchemist and his wife?"** said the soldier.

**"Kill them!"** said the stranger. Suddenly, gunshots are heard from outside the hidden room. Princess wanted to burst out, but she promised that she would stay still. As soon as she knows that the coast was clear, she bursts out of the room to see what had happened. But sadly, all she could find is her parents dead on the floor. She cries and mourns for their death, but she couldn't stay there for long. The people who murdered her parents are looking for her, and she needs to escape and hide.

She runs into the forest to hide. It took a few days before the people stops looking for her. Even though she escaped alive, she could no longer remember how to get back to the town where she grew up in. So she she had no choice but to live in the woods. Times were tough for Princess, as she grew older, she had no clothes to wear. She had no choice but to make a cape and boots from animal skins to cover her naked body. She also had to live off of anything that she could find in the wild for food. Mainly herbs, berries, fruits, nuts, mushrooms, and any animals she could catch.

Ten years after the incident, Princess grew up into a young woman. By random chance, she found the town where she grew up again. But she was not happy to see it. The village was in the middle of a festival when she got there. The happy smiles she saw on the villager's faces made her blood boil in anger. She blamed everyone for the death of her parents. Since she feels that everyone has robbed her of her happiness, it was fair to take theirs away.

The old hut where she used to live was still standing when she arrived at the town. It was abandoned, and nothing inside was taken. So she grabbed some of her mother's old clothing, and wears them. She then gathered all of her father's alchemy books, and started looking for something she can use to get her revenge.

She found a pyro technique that she can use to destroy the town. She practiced the alchemic spell until she mastered it several hours later. That night while the town was asleep, Princess drew a large transmutation circle just like the one in the book she read. She then starts a small fire in the middle of the circle, and chants the words she memorized from the book. The circle started to glow, and a huge explosion engulfs the entire village into flames.

Everyone escaped the village alive, but they all no longer had a home to live. Only a few people ever saw the angry look on Princess' face. Ever since then, she changed her name from Princess to Witch Princess. The only building left standing after the fire is the hut, so she decided to live there for the rest of her life.

Recalling such a horrible memory causes tears to drip from Witch Princess' eyes. She wipes her face and says, **"Yuki, I am going to make you suffer. Just you wait, the time is drawing near!"**

**To be continued.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

_Fall 5, 2003_

It's a quiet Fall day in Romana's Villa. Lumina had already finished her daily practice, so she heads over to her library of books to find something to read. Her library may not be very large, but she still has plenty of books that she could read. In the many years that she has lived in the Villa, Lumina has already read all the books that she owns. Van is not in town today, so she'll need to wait until he comes around to buy some new books.

As she is searching through the titles, Romana enters Lumina's room. Curious to know what she is doing, Romana walks up to her and asks, **"Lumina dear, what are you looking for?"**

Lumina looks back at Romana and smiles. **"Hi there. I was looking for a book to read. But I am not sure what I want to read today."**

Romana walks over to Lumina's collection of books, and scans through the titles. She then pulls a book out of the shelf and hands it to Lumina. **"Why don't you read this one? I'm sure the last time you read it was when you first arrived here so many years ago."**

Lumina takes a good look at the book titled _'The Snow of Spring'_. **"I remember this book! It's a romance about a kind and gentle man who fell in love with a lonely woman."** Lumina places her hand on the gold colored words written on the cover, and takes a deep sigh. **"Wow, the title kind of reminds me of Yuki."**

**"How so?"** asked Romana.

**"Well, think about it. Yuki means snow, and he was born in Spring. So he is like the snow of Spring. He is the kind and gentle man, and I am the lonely girl. I only wish that he would fall in love with me just like the main character in this book."** Lumina sighs again, and embraces the book joyfully.

Romana looks at Lumina and asks, **"You really like that boy, don't you?"** Lumina nods as she continues to embrace the book. **"What is so special about him? I mean, he is a handsome young man, but just about every girl in Forget-Me-Not Valley likes him as well. There are other single and handsome men in the valley you know."**

**"Yuki is not an ordinary person, he is special. We all may like him, but we have our own unique reasons."** answered Lumina. **"Muffy likes him because he is young, and she feels that Yuki will not leave her for any other girl. Celia likes him because he is hard working, and they have a lot in common. Nami is not very feminine and guys don't take her seriously, but Yuki is the only one who sees her as a woman. Flora likes him because Yuki can eat her food without getting sick, not to mention that Carter doesn't even notice her."**

Romana nods and asks, **"What about you? Why do you care about him so much?"**

**"It's because we understand each other."** answered Lumina. **"When I first arrived here a long time ago, I used to be very sad and lonely because mom and dad died. I felt that nobody could understand how lonely I was without them. But then I met Yuki, he went through the same thing I did. His mother died from an illness, and his father died in the farm that he lives in. He noticed how sad and lonely I was, so he asked me to talk about it. I remember those words he told me that day, _'Don't worry, even though your mother and father are gone, they will always be watching over you. I promise.'_ I believe in those words, I know mother and father are watching over me."**

Romana smiles after hearing Lumina confess about how she feels. She then looks at Lumina's dress and asks, **"Lately since last Christmas, you've been wearing that brown and olive dress a lot. What made you change?"**

Lumina giggles and says, **"I thought that if I show Yuki my feminine side a bit more, he would like me. I used to be such a tomboy, wearing jeans, shirts, and pink sneakers. Yuki has noticed me more since I've been wearing this dress and cut my hair a little bit shorter, but nothing has changed yet between us. I just hope that Yuki will understand how I truly feel about him, and he would one day he would feel the same about me."**

**"I see. Well, I need to take a nap. Have fun reading."** said Romana.

Lumina nods, and jumps on her bed where she can read in peace. The book is heavy, and will take several days to read from start to finish. She opens the book, and begins to read to herself out loud. As soon as she gets to the introduction of the main character, she couldn't help but to smile and think of Yuki.

_Fall 8, 2003_

Choco is in the kitchen cooking breakfast for her father. After the last pancake is done, she carefully takes it to the table, and gently places it on the others making a stack of three. She then places all the dishes she used in the sink so that they can be washed later. Seeing that her surprise is going as planned, she runs over to Yuki's room and bursts in.

Choco Climbs on Yuki's bed, and begins to jump yelling, **"Dad! Dad! Wake up! Wake up! It's breakfast time! Let's eat!"**

Yuki opens his eyes and says, **"Choco, please be quiet. I had a hard day last night, and I want to sleep in today."**

**"Aww, but I made you breakfast. Can you please wake up and have some?"** whined Choco.

**"I'll have some later, now let me sleep."** answered Yuki. He closes his eyes, and tries to go back to sleep. But only a second later, he wakes up again and jumps out of bed. He then looks at Choco with a shocked and confused look on his face asking, **"You did what?!"**

**"I made you breakfast."** answered Choco.

**"No!! My kitchen!!"** yelled Yuki fearing the worst. He runs over to the kitchen to see what sort of disaster had Choco caused. But he stopped running as soon as he stepped out of the room. His jaw dropped as soon as he sees the kitchen unharmed. Not only that, but the kitchen is cleaner than it was last night. Yuki sees the chocolate pancakes neatly stacked on the table, he couldn't believe what he is seeing.

Choco follows Yuki out of the room and yells, **"Surprise dad!"**

Yuki looks at Choco and asks, **"Choco, you did all this? You actually woke up earlier than me to cook breakfast, and clean the kitchen?"**

Choco nods and answers, **"You're always taking such good care of me, so I thought I'd help out."**

Yuki walks over to the table, and closely examines the pancakes. Not even a single trace of burn or undercooking could be seen on the chocolate flavored flap jacks. He looks over at Choco and says, **"I appreciate the breakfast Choco, but I promised that I wouldn't eat any more chocolates, remember?"**

Choco puts a fork in Yuki's hand and pulls Yuki's chair out saying, **"Come on dad, I think you deserve some chocolates. Now sit and have some."**

Yuki nods and takes a seat. He pours some chocolate syrup on his pancakes and has a bite. His eyes jerk open in delight as he yells, **"It's great! Choco, this is incredible! Where did you learn to make pancakes just as well as I do?"**

**"I watch you do it every day. I memorized the recipe, and I felt confident that I could do it. I know that I should have asked first, but I really wanted to surprise you. I hope you're not mad at me dad."**

Yuki then looks at Choco awkwardly and asks, **"Choco, when did you start calling me _'Dad'_ instead of _'Daddy'_?"**

**"Just today."** answered Choco. **"I'm a big girl now, so I'm going to call you dad from now on. Is that okay?"**

Yuki nods, and continues to eat. After breakfast, Yuki and Choco both start to get ready for another day. Yuki heads over to the fields to water the plants, and Choco heads out with her mini rucksack full of stuff.

Several hours later, Yuki finally finishes watering the huge field of crops. He walks over to the carrots to check on them. According to what Vesta told him earlier, the carrots should ripen the next day. But Yuki sees that the carrots still need a little bit more time to ripen.

He stands up and says, **"Looks like the harvest will be a little late. I wonder why the crops are growing a bit slower this year? Maybe they need fertilizer, I should think about getting some this Spring and fertilize the field before I plant the crops."** Yuki stretches his arms and continues, **"Well, it's time to gather the milk and eggs!"**

Yuki walks over to the shipping bin where he left his basket to start collecting the animal produce. But he notices that it's missing as soon as he gets there. He checks all around the bin, near the lumber sheds, and near the stable in case that he has misplaced it. But no matter how hard he looks, he cannot find it.

He scratches his head and says, **"Don't tell me that the hobo took it again? That's the third time that he took it since I came to live here."**

**"Dad!!"** cried Choco from a distance. **"Can you help me please?"**

Yuki turns around and says, **"Sure Choco, what do you-"** Yuki's eyes popped open as soon as he saw Choco with his missing basket. Choco is dragging it into the farm overflowing with random fall crops.

Yuki runs to her side and yells, **"Choco! What is all that?! Please don't tell me that you went to Vesta's farm, and picked her crops!"**

Choco shakes her head no and says, **"Nope, these are mine."**

Yuki tilts his head in confusion and asks, **"Yours? What do you mean?"**

**"Remember the allowance you've been giving me? Well, I used it to buy seeds and planted them in my secret crop field."** answered Choco.

**"You have a _'secret crop field'_? Where?"** asked Yuki.

Choco pulls the heavy basket once more and says, **"Help me ship these, and I'll show you."**

Yuki carries the basket over to the shipping bin, and dumps them inside. Choco takes a deep breath of relief, and wipes the sweat off her forehead. She then grabs Yuki's shirt, and takes him out of the farm. They move to the east, and then walk north up the path next to Yuki's farm. At the end of the path is a small garden where wild flowers grow next to a lake. In the corner of the field, there is an enormous rock that nobody could break. Choco climbs over the rock, and moves along the hidden path behind it. Yuki has a harder time getting over the rock, but he is able to manage.

At the end of the path, Yuki finds himself in a hidden field in the middle of the forest. Clear from trees, there is more than enough light to support the enormous field. In the field, Yuki sees many crop plants that has been growing and bearing fruit. Eggplant crops, spinach crops, carrots, yams and peppers grew healthier than the ones in Yuki's farm. Some of the crops has already been picked by Choco, but there is still a lot more to pick.

Yuki gasps in amazement as he looks at Choco's field of crops. **"Choco, you did all of this all by yourself?"**

Choco answers, **"Not by myself. Hugh and Kate helps me out whenever they can. I found this field when we were playing hide and seek during the Summer. Since nobody was using it, I cleared out whatever I could, and used my allowance to buy seeds. I thought that if I tried doing what you do, I would be just like you."**

Yuki scratches his head and asks, **"But Choco, where did you learn how to farm? I didn't teach you how to do this."**

Choco pulls a notebook out of her rucksack and hands it to Yuki. **"I found it back at home. I learned how to farm from that."**

Yuki opens the notebook, and nearly faints from shock. **"Choco, these are dad's notes! You actually understand this stuff? Even I don't get half the things dad wrote here!"**

Choco raises her index finger and says, **"It's easy dad, all I need to do is plant the crops in a square pattern leaving just enough room to walk around without harming the plants. Since the earth here has not been used in a long time, it's very fertile, and rich in nutrients to allow crops to grow at a rapid pace. the crops back at home cannot grow well because you used too much space making a pasture for the animals. The grass is stealing nutrients from the earth which slows down the growth rate of the other crops."**

As Choco continues to talk like an over-educated young lady, Yuki just stands there watching her in shock. He then whispers in his mind, **"What the. . . Am I really talking to Choco? Just a little while ago, she was a pretty naive little girl. Now she's cooking, cleaning, and knows more about farming than I do."** Yuki thinks for a moment and continues to whisper to himself, **"Now that I think about it, Choco does have a fast learning pace. Like when I gave her the art pad and crayons, she didn't know how to draw anything at first. But in only a few days, she was able to draw so well, that even though she drew on my walls, I actually complimented it. Her language is developing pretty quickly too, when she first came here, she was talking in baby mode. Now she is using bigger and more complicated words. And when we went to the circus, Choco was able to learn how to tame lions just by watching cartoons. It takes a normal person years to master something like that. Choco can read and write pretty good now, I don't think she knew how to do that when she came to live with me. It took me years of practice to learn how to cook. But Choco only watches me, and she is able to do it as good as I can. I remember when she tried to cook for the first time, she blew up my kitchen. Now this, she learned how to farm better than I can just by reading my father's notes."**

Choco notices Yuki lost in though, so she stops her explanation and asks, **"Dad, is everything okay?"**

Yuki snaps out of his daydream and says, **"I'm find Choco."** Yuki looks around and asks, **"What tools do you use to care for these crops?"**

**"Those!"** Choco points at the rusted old tools in a corner. Yuki sees his old watering can, his old sickle, and an old hand trowel which is the only thing that didn't belong to him. **"Carter gave me the trowel because he wasn't using it anymore. Your hoe was too heavy for me to use. I got the watering can and the sickle from your tool shed. I noticed that you never use them anymore, so I borrowed them."**

**"I see."** said Yuki. He then continues to examine the field, and sees that there is still a lot of tree stumps and boulders in the field. **"Why didn't you clear everything out Choco?"** he asked.

**"Well, I need a hammer and an axe to clear out the rest. But they are too heavy for me to carry so I just planted around them."** answered Choco.

Yuki kneels down and pats Choco on the head saying, **"You did a great job on this field. Mind if I help you clear out the heavy stuff?"**

Choco nods, and Yuki grabs his tools to clear out the stumps and boulders for Choco. They went back home carrying the lumber to be placed into the sheds. Yuki then takes Choco over to the barns and coops where he could teach her how to care for animals. Just as Yuki suspected, Choco learned how to do his work very quickly, and is able to do everything he could after only a few tries.

Yuki and Choco finished working on the animals very quickly, and it was only noon by the time they finish. Yuki was feeling quite happy, so he pats Choco on the head and says, **"Hey, you want to come to Mineral Town with me? I want to introduce you to all my friends over there."**

Choco looks up at Yuki, and nods cheerfully. They catch a boat, and lands in Mineral Town. Since Summer is over, Kai is no longer in Mineral Town until the next Summer. But he is still able to introduce Choco properly to the other villagers. They were all confused about how did Yuki have a 10 year old kid at his age. But Choco is so cute, nobody really cared too much. Whether it made sense or not, Choco is his daughter, and they must accept that.

Yuki and Choco returns to Forget-Me-Not Valley that evening. Yuki's pay was already left in his mailbox, and he takes Choco's share of the money and gives it to her. Strangely, Choco's crops made far more money than Yuki's crops ever did. Her crops are by far better quality than the crops that Yuki grew which fetched a higher price. Yuki then decides to let Choco help in the farm in exchange for more play time, and a bigger allowance.

That night, Choco was put to bed, and she fell asleep quickly. Yuki went back to his own room, and starts to write in his diary. He writes:

**Fall 8, 2003**

**Today, I learned a lot about Choco that I never thought possible. I seems that she can learn things very quickly, and she can even surpass me who is double her age. I find that to be quite amazing, she even has her own crop field that is healthier than my own. I can't stop but to feel a bit jealous because a kid is doing better than I am. In the same time, I am proud of her. I guess I never noticed because I never gave her a chance to show me what she can do. I even took her to Mineral Town where she could meet my friends over there. I was freaked out at first because I had no idea how they would react. But they were pretty cool about it. I guess that they needed a bit of time to accept Choco, just like the people in Forget-Me-Not Valley. I am so lucky to have such good dependable friends.**

Yuki starts to think for a moment, and concludes.

**But I wonder. . . Choco is supposed to be really fast at learning, but why did she come to me with the mentality of a 5-year old? Did her mother just ignore her for 10 whole years without giving her a chance? It just doesn't make any sense. But I still need to remember that nothing about Choco made any sense before. I wonder, who is her mother?**

**To be continued.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

_Fall 12, 2003_

It's early evening in Romana's Villa. Lumina has just finished reading the book "The Snow of Spring", and is now down to the last page. Feeling proud that she has finally read the entire book from front to back, she smiles and recalls all the romantic and touching moments between the main character, and the heroine.

She turns the page, and reads the epilogue of the story which tells what happened to the characters after the story is over. The last page reads:

**Epilogue:**

**Several years has passed since Tom and Marla has said their vows in holy matrimony. They are now living in a peaceful country village sharing eternal love for one another. Their daughter is born not too long after they got married, She is now 5 years old living cheerfully with both her loving parents. Together, they made a family tradition of eating strawberry shortcake below a huge cherry blossom tree in a peaceful park together. And they lived happily ever after.**

**The end.**

As Lumina closes the book, she smiles at the touching ending that fit the story so well. She closes the book, and places it back on her book shelf. She then sighs deeply and says, **"Wow, that was such a great story. I only wish that Yuki can sweep me off my feet like the main character did in that story."**

She then turns around, and starts walking to her easel so that she can start practicing her art. But just before she takes a seat on her stool, she stops to think for a moment. She places a finger on her chin and says, **"Now that I think about it, where have I heard a similar story as the epilogue to _'The Spring of Snow'_?"**

She then remembers that Spring day when Choco mentioned that she, Yuki, and her mother used to spend time below a cherry blossom. **"Oh yeah, Choco did mention that she wanted to go back to the park and have fun at that tree. How strange, Yuki lived in a city, there shouldn't be any trees like that in a big city like that."**

**"Lumina!"** yelled the voice of Romana. Her concentration on the subject suddenly breaks, and she runs out to see what Romana wants.

**"Yes auntie, what is it?"** replied Lumina as she looks down from the second floor.

Romana answers, **"Van just came over, and dropped off these chocolates. He said something about that you asked him to get them for you."** Lumina rushes down the steps to pick up the chocolates that she ordered. Romana stares at her holding the chocolates and asks, **"What are they for? You're not that big of a chocolate fan."**

**"It's not for me."** answered Lumina. **"I think I have a plan to get Choco to like me. These are special imported chocolates that are supposed to be the best in the whole world. With this, Choco may like me enough to make Yuki like me more than just friends. I can already imagine Yuki offering me the blue feather already."**

**"I see that you are still thinking about that boy."** commented Romana. **"But please remember that you cannot force him to like you. Trying too hard will only push him away in the end. Remember that."**

After her lecture, Romana walks back into her room where she can rest. Lumina runs back into her own room, and gets prepared to rest as well. That night, she dreams that she is below the cherry blossom tree with Yuki and Choco like a perfect family.

_Fall 15, 2003_

At noon, Lumina walks to Yuki's farm to get Choco. She walks up to his door, and knocks on it. She stood there waiting for an answer. It didn't take long before Yuki opens the door, and finds Lumina standing there. He smiles and greets, **"Hi there Lumina. What can I do for you?"**

Lumina smiles back and says, **"Hi, I was wondering if Choco can play with me. Is she home?"**

**"Yeah, she's in her room playing with her toys. Let me call her for you."** Yuki then goes over to Choco's room, and tells her that she has a visitor.

Choco runs over to the front door, and finds Lumina. She smiles and says, **"Hi lady!"**

Lumina squats down to Choco's height and says, **"Hi there Choco. Would you like to come to my house, and play with me? I have some new chocolates that you might want to try."**

Choco jumps up and down as she yells, **"Okay!!"** Lumina giggles at how cute Choco is behaving, then she holds her hand to walk with her back to the mansion. They sit in the patio with two kettles on the table. One of them has hot chocolate that Sebastian made with the chocolates Lumina received last night. The other had relaxation tea, Lumina's favorite flavored tea.

Lumina poured the chocolate in a tea cup for Choco, and relaxation tea for herself. Choco takes a sip and beamed, **"Wow! It's great!"**

Lumina laughed and commented, **"I knew you would like it. It's chocolate from Italy, made from some of the finest chocolate makers in the world."** She then took a sip of her tea, and watched her enjoy the chocolate in delight.

As she sat there with Choco, she feels that just having a drink is not enough to seal the deal. She needs to have a nice conversation with her as well. Getting to know Choco better, and getting her to know herself is vital for her plans. She then thinks about what she was thinking about last night, so she puts her tea cup down and says, **"So Choco, tell me more about your past."**

**"My past?"** asked Choco.

**"Yeah. A while ago, you mentioned that you and Yuki used to play around a Cherry Blossom. Tell me more about that."** She then continues to drink her tea as she waits for an answer.

Choco things very hard before answering, **"Let's see. Mom and dad would take me to the cherry blossom tree in the park after I was born. . . And we used to eat strawberry shortcake all the time!"**

Hearing Choco say that makes Lumina gasp. But she was drinking tea, so she spits it out all over the table coughing. Choco looks at Lumina and yells, **"Eww, that's nasty! Why did you do that!?"**

**"I'm sorry, I was just shocked."** After she has calmed down, she asks her, **"But Choco, did you say that you used to eat strawberry shortcake?"**

**"Yes I did."**

**"With Yuki?"**

**"Yeah, dad, mom, and I ate strawberry shortcake. It was our little tradition."** answered Choco.

Lumina thought for a moment and says in her head, **"Wow, thats an amazing coincidence, it's almost exactly like my story. But something seems strange here. Yuki can't eat strawberry shortcake!"**

**"Is something wrong?"** asked Choco.

Lumina looks at Choco and says, **"Nothing, I was just lost in thought."** She stands up and continues,** "I have to go do something quickly, wait for me right here."**

Choco nods, and Lumina goes inside the mansion calling for Sebastian. He walks out of the kitchen ans says, **"Yes Miss Lumina, did you need me?"**

**"I need you to do me a little favor. Can you please bake me a strawberry short cake?"** asked Lumina.

**"Yes, I can do that. But why do you need me to do that so suddenly?"**

**"I just need to confirm something."** answered Lumina. Sebastian is not sure what she meant, but it's not his place to ask questions. So he heads back to the kitchen to start making the cake.

Choco waits outside, but gets bored too quickly. She looks around, and notices something odd next to the mansion. A small old wooden hut stands close to the mansion. She is not sure why, but she is drawn to the old hut. She stands up, and slowly walks up to it. The old worn door doesn't seem locked, so she reaches out to see what's inside. Just then, Lumina walks out, and sees Choco near the hut.

**"Choco!"** called Lumina. Choco pulled her hand away from the door, and turns back to look at Lumina. **"Please stay away from that hut."**

**"Why? What's inside?" **asked Choco.

**"I don't know to tell you the truth."** answered Lumina.** "But auntie Romana tells me that nobody should go near that hut. It's cursed or something like that. Why don't we go into my room? I have lots of things I want to show you."**

Choco takes a second look at the hut before she runs off to join Lumina. Inside her room, Lumina shows Choco lots of portraits that she has painted over the many years she has been living in Forget-Me-Not Valley. Choco is impressed at how well Lumina can paint, and wishes that she can do art as well as she can. Lumina then shows Choco several photographs of when she was younger. Many of the photographs are of her either painting, or playing the piano.

Choco did not recognize Lumina in the older Photographs. Unlike now, Lumina is wearing more tomboyish clothes like jeans, shirts, and sneakers. Her hair was longer when she was younger as well. As she turns the pages in the photo album, Choco starts to find Yuki in some of the photos. In those photographs, Lumina is smiling more than in the older ones.

Several hours later, Sebastian is done baking the cake, and he calls Lumina over to get it. Before giving the cake to Lumina, she requests that he places it into a small gift box. She then takes the cake to Choco, and gives it to her. Choco looks at the gift box and says, **"What is this?"**

**"It's a present for Yuki."** answered Lumina.** "But don't tell him that it's from me. Tell him that it's a gift from you."**

**"Okay!!"** cheered Choco. Then she said her goodbyes, and walks home carrying the package for Yuki. Just as she leaves, Lumina follows her unnoticed back to the farm. Choco walks into her house without a clue that Lumina is following her. Lumina sneaks into the side of the house, and looks through a window where she can watch Yuki's reaction to the gift.

Choco walks up to Yuki and says, **"Hi dad! I have a gift for you!"**

**"Really for me?"** answered Yuki. Choco then opened the package to reveal the strawberry shortcake to him. As soon as Yuki sees it, he screams, and falls on his behind. Choco walks up to him, and he crawls away yelling, **"Choco, get that thing away from me!"**

**"Huh? But why?"** Choco looks into the package and says, **"Oh wow! Strawberry shortcake! Dad, let's have some!"**

**"No way! Are you crazy?! Are you trying to kill me!?"** yelled Yuki.

Lumina watches Yuki continue to freak out for a while. She then looks away from the window and says, **"I knew it! Yuki couldn't possibly be eating strawberry short cake when he was younger. Yuki is allergic to strawberries! I once gave him some chocolate covered strawberries a long time ago, and I sent him to the clinic. As far as Choco's past resembling the story in my book is odd enough. But this alone proves that Yuki isn't Choco's father after all."**

Lumina left the farm, and walks back to the mansion. On the way back, she says to herself, **"Choco clearly remembers eating strawberry cake with Yuki, but Yuki cannot eat strawberries. Could Choco have confused Yuki with someone else? Someone who actually likes strawberries, but looks very alike to Yuki?"** She continues to think about the situation, and then continues, **"But then what about the paternity test? That test said that Yuki really is her father. . . But, the test is not 100 percent accurate. Even if the test is 99.9 percent accurate, there is still a 1/1000 chance that it could be wrong."** Lumina sighs and concludes, **"What do I do? Should I tell Yuki that he really isn't Choco's father after all? What would happen if I did tell him?"**

_Fall 16, 2003_

Early in the day, Lumina pays a visit to Yuki's farm. She knocks on the door, and Yuki answers it quickly. He is surprised to see Lumina over a second day in a row, but he is more surprised that Lumina is not as cheerful as usual. He invites her in, and makes tea for her. Lumina just sits in the table with something that weighs heavily on her mind.

Yuki serves Lumina some tea, but she still looks worried. Yuki sits down and says, **"Is everything OK Lumina? Is something bothering you?"**

**"Nothing is bothering me, I just thought I could talk to you, that's all."** Yuki doesn't understand why is Lumina acting the way she is, so he just serves himself some tea, and waits patiently for her to say something. After a while she finally says, **"Is Choco here?"**

**"No, she's out playing with Kate and Hugh. She's really become close friends with them."** Yuki then takes another sip of his tea.

She takes a deep breath and asks, **"Yuki, what if you were to find out that Choco really isn't your daughter?"**

Yuki puts his tea down and asks, **"What's with the sudden strange question?"**

**"I'm just curious. Not many things actually make sense about Choco, and there still may be a chance that she may not be your child after all. I'm just wondering how would you react if that was the case."**

Yuki looks out the window for a moment. Remembering all the hard times that he had with Choco along with the good times flood his mind. He then answers, **"You know, I don't think it would matter anymore."** Lumina looks at Yuki with a shocked look on her face. **"I've been thinking about the same thing every once in a while. What if Choco really isn't my daughter, what will I do with her. But after a while, I remember Choco's situation. She doesn't have a mother, and if I am not her father, then she is just an orphan. But even so, Choco has been living with me for a while, she practically is family anyway. She may be troublesome, energetic, and a pain in the neck sometimes, but everyone loves her. I even took her to Mineral Town the other day, and everyone was more than willing to accept her. Once you think about it for a while, she is a member of our little community known as Forget-Me-Not Valley. So if I do find out that Choco is not my daughter, I'll still raise her as my own. After all, she still needs a father, don't you agree Lumina?"**

Lumina smile and nods in agreement. Just then, Choco walks into the house and yells, **"Dad, I'm Home!"** She then notices Lumina in the house and says, **"It's the lady from yesterday! Did you come to play?"**

**"Yes, I did come to play."** answered Lumina. Lumina then had an idea and says, **"I still have some of that chocolate back in the mansion. Why don't you come over and finish it?"** Choco then cheered loudly, and left the farm with Lumina.

Back at the mansion, Lumina thought she was going to have another peaceful day to get to know Choco a bit better. But Romana has other plans for Lumina. She waited for Lumina to return to the mansion with an upset look on her face.

Romana lifts her cane and yells, **"Lumina, where have you been young lady! You know you have to practice the piano before leaving the Mansion!"**

Lumina forgot all about her practice that day, but since she already brought Choco with her, she thought that she can excuse herself for today. **"I'm sorry auntie Romana, I forgot all about it. Can I practice tomorrow instead? I brought Choco over to play."**

Romana lifts her cane again and exclaims, **"I don't care if the prince of London came over, you're still going to practice!"**

Lumina sighs and says, **"Okay, I'll practice right now."** Romana then goes back inside the mansion. Lumina looks down at Choco and says, **"I'm sorry Choco, but I need to practice the piano right now. Please go home on your own, we'll have that chocolate tomorrow."**

Choco looks back at Lumina and asks, **"Can I watch you practice?"**

**"Umm, sure if you want to."** said Lumina surprised to hear Choco ask to keep her company while she plays. So they both enter the mansion, and they sit side by side in front of the piano. Lumina then sets the score sheet, and begins to play the beautiful melody on the piano.

Choco sits next to her, and listens to the blissful music rocking her head side by side. Somewhere in the middle of the song, she misses a key and stops. Choco then looks at Lumina and says, **"Lady, why did you stop?"**

Lumina sighs and says, **"Sorry, but I missed a note, and I have to start over."**

**"How do you know when you miss a note?"** asked Choco.

Lumina points to the score and says, **"I use this to tell me what keys I have to push in order to make the music I want. When the score says to play E flat, I have to push the E flat key."** Lumina then presses the key on the piano to demonstrate what she's talking about.

Choco nods. Just then, Romana's voice calls, **"Lumina, can you come here a moment? I dropped my medicine, and I can't bend down to get it!"**

Lumina huffs and tells Choco, **"Please wait right here. I have to help my auntie for a moment. I will be right back."**

**"Okay!"** said Choco. Lumina then runs over to Romana's room to help her with her problem. While Lumina is away, Choco stares at the score for a moment. She compares the notes Lumina was playing earlier to the score sheet in front of her. Using her memory, Choco begins to touch the keys one by one playing the music Lumina had just played.

In Romana's room, Lumina picks up the medicine her aunt dropped, and hands it to her. Romana then says, **"Thank you dear. How is the practice going?"**

**"I missed one note, but I'm sure that I'll be able to get it by tonight."** answered Lumina.

Romana smiles and says,** "That's great. You're really getting better that that piano Lumina. I'm sure if your mother was here, she would be proud, and-"** Romana then hears someone playing the piano. **"Is my hearing going, or is someone playing on the piano?"**

Lumina pricks her ears, and hears the piano as well. **"That's odd. There was nobody else in the piano room other than me and. . . No way!"** They both then rushes over to the den to see who is playing on the piano. They both gasp to see Choco playing the same exact melody that Lumina was playing. Lumina is also shocked to see her playing past the point where Lumina stopped earlier. She is also not making any mistakes either.

**"My god! That's amazing!"** yelled Romana.

Choco suddenly stops after hearing Romana's voice. She looks back and sees the shocked expression on their faces. Choco panics and says, **"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to touch the piano! Please don't tell dad!"**

**"No! It's okay! You didn't do anything wrong!"** yelled Lumina. She then walked up to her, and patted on her head to show that she is not in trouble. **"But Choco, where did you learn how to play the piano?"**

**"You taught me."** answered Choco.

**"I did?"**

**"Yeah, remember?"** Choco points at the score sheet and says, **"You told me that if I follow the paper here, I can play the music. You showed me that this button is E flat."** Choco then pushed the key that Lumina showed her. **"Then I just remembered what buttons you pressed, and matched the dots on the paper. Using what I learned from you, I just played the song."**

Lumina couldn't believe what she is hearing. In only a few moments, Choco has mastered a skill that Lumina spend half her life trying to learn. She thought for a moment, and ran to her bedroom to find several score sheets for different songs. She brought them back to the piano and placed one of them on the piano. She then asked Choco, **"Can you play this one?"**

Choco stared at the sheet, but the notes are not familiar to her. She shook her head no, so Lumina started playing the first half of the melody. Choco is able to memorize it, and starts to play the song along side with Lumina. After several songs are played, Choco is then able to play any song that Lumina can put out for her.

Several hours later, it's becoming dark, and Choco needs to return home. Neither Lumina or Romana has seen anything so amazing as a child who can master the piano in a single day's worth of practice. Choco had a lot of fun playing the piano, and she asked Lumina if she could be her instructor from then on. Choco's talent inspires her to practice a little harder so that she can be the best instructor for Choco.

_Fall 17, 2003_

That afternoon, Lumina takes the book titled _"The Spring of Snow",_ and walks to Yuki's house carrying it. As she walks, she says to herself, **"I'm sorry Choco. But even if you're going to hate me for this, Yuki still has to know the truth. Yuki is not your father, and only I can prove that. But even so, everything is going to be okay. Yuki told me that his feelings are not going to change. But I still have to let him know."**

When he arrives at his house, she finds a note on his door saying that they have gone fishing. Lumina knows that the only place Yuki likes to fish is at the beach. So she turns around and starts heading to the beach.

Meanwhile, The Witch Princess has a free moment, so she decides to check on Choco. She waves her hand over the crystal ball, and sees that Choco is at the beach with Yuki. She smiles knowing that Yuki and Choco are bonding. But on the edge of the crystal ball, she notices Lumina hiding behind them.

She moves her attention to Lumina to see what she's doing. She panics as soon as she sees the book hidden behind her back. **"No! Not that book! If Yuki reads that book, my plans will be ruined!"**

Lumina remains hidden for a while watching Choco and Yuki fishing together like a father and daughter activity. Just before she decides to move closer, Choco's line catches a bite. The catch was too big for Choco to reel in alone, so Yuki grabs her rod, and helps her pull the fish in. A huge dorado measuring over a meter in length flies out of the water, and into the land where Yuki and Choco were sitting.

Yuki pats Choco on the head and says, **"Great job! This will make an excellent dinner tonight!"**

Yuki and Choco laugh cheerfully. At that moment, Lumina completely changes her mind about telling Yuki the truth about Choco. Even if Choco is not Yuki's daughter, Lumina has no right to take their happiness away.

Choco looks back, and notices Lumina standing there. She waves at her and says, **"Lady! You came!"**

Yuki looks back, and sees Lumina as well. **"Hi there! You looking for us?"**

Lumina holds the book tightly behind her and says, **"No, I was just taking a walk. This was just a coincidence."**

Choco runs up to Lumina, and notices that she is hiding something behind her back. She quickly takes a peek and asks, **"Is that a book you have there? Is it a good book? Can I read it?"**

Lumina laughs and says, **"No, it's just a boring old book. If you want, I can show you a really good book back at my home."**

Choco looks back at Yuki and says, **"Dad, can I?"**

**"Sure you can."** answered Yuki trying to wrestle with the fish. **"I need to get this big fish home and cook it. Make sure you're home for dinner."**

**"Okay!"** cheered Choco, and then she walked off with Lumina back to the mansion.

Back in the Witch Princess' hut, she lets out a sigh of relief after seeing that Lumina is not going to show Yuki the book. She sits on her bed and says, **"That was a close one. Who would have ever guessed that after all that time, Lumina would read that book again. But as long as Yuki is still clueless, I'm still satisfied."** She then takes a moment to think, and continues, **"But I wonder what's taking that kid so long? Yuki should be suffering by now. . . I think I should check on things just in case."**

The Witch Princess walks over to her library of books, and pulls out a book labeled _"Arcane Alchemy"_, better known as _"Black Magic"_. She reads the incantation she needs to perform, and starts to set everything up. Using red chalk, she draws a demonic looking pattern inside a large circle. She then walks over to a caged rat, and pulls it out. Using a knife, she stabs the rat in it's belly, and allows the blood to drip in the center of the circle. She drops the dead rat after the blood stops flowing, and reads the spell out loud:

**"Oh Haljia, master of darkness and the realm of the dead. I call upon you to appear, and answer my question. I offer you this small sacrifice, so appear now!"**

The center of the circle starts to radiate a dark cloud that consumes the dead rat. Slowly, a shadow figure that takes the shape of a huge cloak appears. In the hood, a skull appears, and skeleton hands appear from the sleeves. A giant sized dark colored sickle appears in it's right skeletal fist. No matter how frightening the shadowy master of death appears, Witch Princess is not afraid.

Two crimson colored glowing spheres appears in the eye sockets of the skull. The shadow figure looks at Witch Princess, and says, **"Well, well. High alchemist Witch Princess, it's been a long time since we last met. What can I do for you?"**

**"Haljia, master of death. I have summoned you to answer a question."** said Witch Princess.

**"I see. But I must remind you that there are several questions that I cannot answer. First of all, I cannot tell you the lifespan of humans and. . ."**

The Witch Princess becomes annoyed with his disclaimers, and yells, **"That's enough! I already know the rules from last time you were here. Now stop wasting my time, and tell me what I need to know!"**

There was a pause for a moment, then the shadow figure says, **"Very well then. What is your question?"**

Witch Princess smirks and says, **"The homunculus named Choco. I wish to know how much time she has left to live."**

The shadow takes a moment to think. It then answers, **"The homunculus named Choco can only live a maximum of only 38 more days."**

Witch Princess nods and asks, **"What about the minimum?"**

**"The minimum number of days that the homunculus named Choco has left to live. . . Has already expired."**

**To be continued.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

_Fall 22, 2003_

As the Witch princess sleeps, she has a dream. Or rather, another painful memory of her past. In her dream, she sees a small group of children playing in a field. She can also see a smaller version of herself hiding behind a tree at the young age of 10 years old. During this time, her mother and father are still alive. Even though her parents told her many times to stay indoors where it's safe, she doesn't listen. She only wants to make friends like the other children.

Watching them laugh and play makes her feel envious of them. Since birth, Princess' only friends were the books of alchemy that her father no longer uses. She knows what will happen if she leaves the house without her mother and father knowing. She knows that she is different than the other children, and it has nothing to do with her blond hair or reddish eyes. But still, she hopes that the others will accept her anyway.

She's trembling, but she slowly walks up to them, hoping that she could join in on their game. It doesn't take long before the group of children notice her approaching them. They quickly stop playing, and stare at her with a awkward glare. From the look on their faces, they are almost offended by her presence.

Princess stops about 15 feet away from the other children. There are four of them, three boys and a single girl. Normally they are good children, but their parents have taught them to hate Princess. She has done nothing wrong, but she is still the most hated person in the entire village.

Everyone knew that Princess' parents could not have children. But with little to no explanation, her mother gave birth to a healthy little girl. Her father also lost his right hand right before the villagers found out she was pregnant. Before long, the villagers started spreading rumors that witchcraft had a hand in Princess' birth, and she was labeled a demon.

**"Hi there. . ."** said Princess with a nervous tone. She was nervous, but she still wanted to be accepted by the other children.

One of the young boys crossed his arms and says, **"Well, well. If it isn't the little Princess. What the the demon girl want with us?"**

Princess remained quiet for a moment. She knew that she had to run before things becomes ugly, but she still wants to try. So she gathered up her courage and says, **"I noticed you were playing. I was wondering if I could play with you. Maybe we could be friends?"**

The expression on the children's faces does not change. They just remain silent looking at her waiting for her to do something. Princess believes that she might be making some progress with them, so she takes a step forward to join them. However, the children frowns angrily which frighten her enough to take two steps back. They quickly grab any nearby stones, and start throwing them at her. She tries to shield herself, but they were throwing them so hard, that the stones would injure her arms. Some of the stones miss her, but the ones that didn't leaves horrible bruises on her arms and face.

**"Stay away from us you monster!"** screamed one of the boys.

**"We don't want to get cursed by the likes of you!"** yelled the little girl.

**"Why don't you just drop dead and die!"** cried another boy.

Princess has no choice but to give up and go home. She covers one of bleeding wounds on her arm as she returns to her home on the top of the hill. On the way there, she sees the other villagers stare at her with malice in their eyes. She can also hear them whisper horrible things about her, calling her names and starting new false rumors Every now and then, someone would throw something at her reminding her that she is not welcome in the village where she was born.

The Witch Princess wakes up in the morning. She places a hand on her face trying to forget the memories of the past. These memories may be centuries old, but no matter how much time passes, they still haunt her. A constant reminder that she will never be accepted within a group of normal people.

Later that day, the five young bachelorettes Celia, Muffy, Nami, Lumina, and Flora pays a visit to Yuki's farm. This time, they are not visiting to put another one of their devious plan into motion. The girls decided that they want to take a trip together, and they wish to take the sixth member of their club along. Yuki's daughter Choco.

They arrive in front of his house, and knock on the door. It only takes a moment before Yuki opens the door and looks at the five girls waiting. He smiles and says, **"Hi there, what can I do for you all?"**

Everyone giggles for a moment after looking at Yuki's face. After they've settled down, Muffy steps forward and says, **"Hi Yuki! We are wondering if Choco wants to hang out with us today! It'll be a girl's day off!"**

**"Hang out? Where?"** asked Yuki.

**"We're gong to the hot springs together as a group."** answered Celia.

**"Oh sure! I'll call Choco, and you can ask her yourselves."** said Yuki. He then steps back in the house to call Choco over to the front door.

After a minute, Choco walks out the door carrying her favorite toy Uma-Kun. She looks up at the five women curiously and says, **"Hi. You need to talk to me?"**

Lumina kneels down and pats her head saying, **"We want to invite you to go to the hot springs with us. Want to come?"**

Choco's face beams with excitement. Even though she has busted into the hot springs once while Yuki was inside one time, but she never had the chance to enjoy a visit yet. She quickly runs in, and runs back out in her favorite swimsuit. Choco shivers from the cold Fall air, but she knows that the hot springs is warm enough to bathe, even in Winter.

Everyone laughs. Then Nami says, **"Choco, you cannot wear your swimsuit to the hot springs! Everyone is taking a bath, so we won't be wearing anything."**

**"Oh, I see."** said Choco just before she runs back in, and changes into something warmer. After grabbing her jacket, she joins the group of single women, and starts walking towards the hot springs.

After Choco leaves, Yuki takes a deep breath of relief. This is the first time that Choco will be out in several days. Since Yuki is rarely alone, he tries to relax as much as he can when he is. He throws himself on the couch in front of the television set, and opens a book to read. But after a few minutes of reading, Yuki realizes something.

He puts the book down and says, **"It's far too quiet without Choco. I wonder when she will get back home. . ."**

Inside the hot springs, Choco runs out of the changing room wearing nothing but a towel to take a look around. Her eyes glow with excitement. The view of the autumn leaves, and the old fashioned hot springs compliment each other very well. It may be getting close to winter, but the spring warms the air enough to walk around comfortably.

The other girls walk out of the changing room also wrapped in towels. They find Choco running around like an excited schoolgirl who has taken a field trip for the first time. **"Choco, the floor is a bit slippery. Stop running, or you might hurt yourself."** said Flora.

Choco stops running and says, **"Sorry about that. I was just so excited."**

**"This is not the first time you've been here you know."** said Celia.** "The last time, Yuki was here as well."**

Choco cheered and yells, **"I remember!"** She then thought for a moment and says,** "But dad didn't want to stay, and the lady who lives in the big house passed out."**

Lumina's face turns red remembering the embarrassing vision from that Spring day. Rather than talking about the past, they dip inside the hot springs one by one. They all tied up their hair, and placed their towels on their heads. Their stress that they've built up over the year quickly melt away into the hot spring water.

Muffy stretches her arms and says, **"Wow! This feels great! I'm so glad I came, my back was killing me!"**

Nami looks at Muffy with envy and says, **"Yeah, I bet it's because of that full feminine figure. Standing around serving drinks all day with extra weight up front must be a burden on your back."**

Muffy waves her index finger left and right saying, **"Do I sense a little jealousy?"**

"Not really." said Nami crossing her arms and looking away. **"I was just thinking of what's the point of a body like that without a man to enjoy it. You're just going to grow old and pruney complaining that you're still single."**

**"You don't know what you're talking about!"** yelled Muffy angrily. **"Someday this body is going to belong to Yuki, and we will have a lot of children!"**

Nami then looks at Muffy angrily. And Muffy snarls at Nami back. Even though they are friends, they are also polar opposites and rivals. The only thing that they have in common is their love for Yuki. The same goes for the other girls, their common interests brings them together as good friends, and friendly rivals as well. They sometimes fight and argue, but they all make up in the end.

**"Hey, has anyone seen Choco?"** asked Celia after noticing that she is not in the spring water.

**"Wheeeee!"** screamed Choco as she jumps in the hot spring. She crashes into the water, and slashes it all over the place soaking everyone else. They all are peeved, but they remember that she is still just a kid trying to have fun. Choco starts walking out of the water and says, **"I want to do that again! That was so much fun!"**

**"Choco!"** called Muffy. **"You're in a hot spring, not a pool. Please don't jump in the water."**

Choco tilts her head to the side and asks, **"I can't jump in the water? Then what can I do in a hot spring?"**

**"Everyone sits down, and relaxes. The hot spring is to relieve stress and muscle aches, not for jumping and playing. If you do play in the hot springs, the hot water may cause fatigue and you might pass out. Do you understand?"**

Choco nods. After everything has settled, everyone sits and breathes heavily trying to relax. Choco is much shorter than the other women, so she needs to sit in the shallow end of the springs. It doesn't take long before Choco becomes very bored just sitting still. So she stands up and walks up to Muffy.

Choco nudges on Muffy's arm and says, **"Lady, I'm bored. Can we do something fun? Can you please tell me a story?"**

Muffy sighs and says, **"I know that we should have said something sooner, but please don't call me _'Lady'_. It's impolite. I do have a name you know."**

Choco stares at Muffy and says,** "So, what is your name?"**

Everyone stares at Choco awkwardly. Muffy then says, **"Are you serious? You don't know my name?"**

Choco places her index finger in her lip and says, **"I never really paid attention. I've been calling everyone 'Lady' or 'Mister' ever since I came to live here. But I really don't know anyone's name."**

Muffy sighs again,she then places her arm around Choco, and pulls her close. She points at Celia and says, **"Okay, let's start learning everyone's names. She is Celia, can you remember that?"** Choco nods. Muffy moves her fingers at the other girls one by one saying, **"She is Nami, then Flora, and finally Lumina."**

Muffy then points at herself saying, **"You can just call me your future step-mother. After all, I'm going to marry your father, so start practicing that."**

Choco puts her finger on her lip again and says, **"Step-mother? I don't know. . ." **She then points at Muffy saying, **"You look more like an auntie than a mother."**

Muffy becomes furious. She grabs Choco, and places her in front of herself. She then starts drilling both her knuckles into Choco's skull yelling, **"Auntie!? How dare you call me that!? That's something you call an old lady! I'll have you know that I am young enough to be a mother! And I am damn sure that I am young enough to YOUR mother!"**

Celia pulls Choco away and says, **"Stop doing that! You're hurting her!"**

Muffy crosses her arms and looks away saying, **"Brat!"**

Celia pats Choco's head trying to relieve the pain caused by Muffy. Choco looks up, and she couldn't help but smile at her kind and caring face. **"Don't worry, I won't let Muffy hurt you any longer."** She then points at herself and asks,** "By the way. If Muffy is like an auntie, then what am I?"**

Choco thinks for a moment and says, **"You're like a big sister!"**

Celia blushes and says,** "Oh my, a big sister. How cute!"**

Nami then approaches Choco and asks, **"What about me? What am I to you?"**

Choco stares into Nami's face for a moment, then says, **"You look more like a big brother!"**

A vein suddenly bulges on Nami's forehead. She then starts running after Choco yelling, **"Come back here and get your spanking kid!"**

Choco runs around yelling, **"Why are you so mad? You wanted to know so I told you!"**

The other girls laugh at both Nami and Choco as they run around in the hot spring. It doesn't take long before Nami tires out from fighting against the hot water, and nearly passes out. But as Choco is running, Celia sees something unusual in her hand. Between Choco's fingers, she can see a small round amber colored crystal with a leather rope tied around it.

Celia waits until the commotion subsides before asking, **"Hey Choco, what's that in your hand?"**

Choco stops moving, and opens her hand to reveal the crystal. **"You mean this? This is my pendant."**

**"Can I see it?"** asked Celia. Choco places the crystal in her hand, and Celia takes a good look at it. **"Wow, it's so pretty. Did Yuki give this to you?"**

Choco shakes her head and says, **"No, I've always had it."**

**"Can I have a look?"** asked Nami. She takes a close look at the crystal in Celia's hand, and then continues, **"Oh, I've seen that before. That day when Yuki and Choco were staying in the Inn last Spring, Choco was wearing it. I guess she wears it under her clothes."**

Celia gasps and asks, **"Choco, did you get this from your mother?"**

Choco takes a moment to think hard about her answer before saying, **"I don't remember how I got it. I think I've had it since the day I was born. I don't remember at all."**

Everyone sighs. They all believed that it was a clue to Choco's mother, but now they are not sure anymore. Flora stares hard at it and says, **"Can I examine it a moment?"** Celia places the crystal in Flora's hands so she can examine it. She plays around with the crystal checking it's density, clarity, and texture. She raises the crystal in the air, and looks through it toward the sun. She then says, **"How unusual. It looks like a piece of amber, but it's definitely not. Amber is much more clearer, and this rock is as hard as diamond. But at the same time, it feels like it weighs nothing. In the many years I've studied rocks, crystals, and minerals, I have never seen anything like this."**

All the other girls stare at it in awe. But Lumina sees something else unusual yet familiar on the crystal. **"Can I see it?"** she asked. Flora gives the crystal to Lumina to take a good look at the small circular engraving somewhere close to the bottom of the crystal. It's hard to see, but Lumina can see a double helix pattern and strange characters that resemble an ancient language inside the circle.

Everyone else notices the tiny strange circular engraving. They stare at it for a while trying to make some sense out of it. **"What do you think that is?"** asked Muffy ending the long silence.

**"It's a transmutation circle."** answered Lumina.

**"And what exactly is that?"** asked Flora.

**"Not exactly sure. But I do know that it has something to do with alchemy."**

**"Alchemy? Like in the periodic table, and the elements?"**

**"No, that's chemistry. Alchemy is something like chemistry, but much more advanced. Alchemy is the process of breaking down matter, and rebuilding it into something different using spiritual energy."**

**"Spiritual energy?"** asked Muffy. **"That sounds more like witchcraft than science."**

**"How do you know about this stuff?"** asked Flora.

**"I read it in a book when I was younger. I was kinda interested in wizards and witches when I was a kid, so I did a little research on it."** answered Lumina. **"You see, many things that we call folklore or fairytales usually is based on something that is true. A long time ago, witchcraft was something we all called something that we did not understand. When something happens, but science cannot explain how it happens, we usually think it's magic."**

**"I don't get it."** said Celia.

**"How can you not get it? It's so easy to understand."** said Nami. **"Look, when a magician pulls a bunny out of his hat, we all think it's magic because we do not know how they do it. But after we learn that there is some sort of hole or some other trick, it's no longer magic because we know how the magician performed the trick."**

**"That's correct."** said Lumina. **"However, alchemy is different. This practice was the closest thing to magic than anything else people has been able to achieve."**

**"How so?"** asked Flora curiously.

**"It's quite complicated how alchemy works. To even perform the basics of alchemy, you need to be gifted enough to tap into the essence of your soul, channel it onto a transmutation circle, and use that energy to change something into something different. Only one out of every ten thousand people are born able to practice alchemy."**

**"I don't quite get it." **said Muffy.

Lumina continues with her explanation, **"Imagine this. What if you could take sand, draw a circle around it, make a pattern and write some sort of incantation around it. Then you touch the circle, and turn that sand into a glass statue. The funny thing about alchemy is that you don't need to use fire, or any tools to do it."**

Celia shivers and says, **"Wow, that does sound like witchcraft. That's so spooky!"**

**"Alchemy is not all that bad."** continued Lumina. **"Alchemists can do a lot of good things for people. Like make medicine using herbs. Make lumber out of straw. Some people even believed that the pyramids were built using alchemy!"**

**"That's really interesting."** said Flora cheerfully.** "But if alchemy is that useful, why doesn't anyone ever practice it anymore?"**

**"Just like there is good alchemy, there is also forbidden alchemy. Also known as _'Black Magic'_."** answered Lumina.

**"What kind of Black Magic?"** asked Celia nervously.

**"Just like the things that we believe the witches do. Like make poisons, or burn villages to the ground. Some alchemists were believed to be able to open up gates to the netherworld, and speak to demons. Some alchemists actually know how to break their own bodies down, and reconstruct themselves elsewhere making them look like the can teleport through walls. And some alchemist want to play god, and try to create life."**

**"Wow, that does sound scary!"** yelled Muffy.

Lumina nods and continues, **"After a while, the common people decided that alchemists were becoming too powerful. So they started the 'Witch Hunt', and labeled any alchemists into witches or warlocks. They were all killed, even if they didn't do anything wrong."**

**"That's so sad once you think about it. Why would they do that to innocent people?"** asked Celia.

**"It's because the people were scared."** answered Nami. **"Every time we feel that something is too strong or scary, we usually destroy it. It's what humans do to protect themselves."**

**"That can't be right!"** said Muffy.

Nami looks at Muffy and asks, **"Okay, let's put that to the test. When you see a bug in the bar, what do you usually do?"**

**"I'd kill it of course!" _said Muffy._ "Bugs are so ugly and scary. . ."** After that, she finally understands what Nami was trying to say.

**"Maybe it's about time we change the subject."** said Flora.

Everyone nods in agreement, and starts to think about a new subject to chat about. For a while, everyone remains quiet as they think about what to say. Muffy looks down at Choco, and notices that she seems like she wants to say something. Muffy then smiles at her and says, **"Sorry, did you wanted to say something?"**

**"Actually, I have a question. I asked dad a few times, but he tells me that he'll answer me when I'm older."**

Muffy pats Choco on the head and says, **"Go ahead, you can tell us what's on your mind."**

Choco hesitates for a moment, then asks, **"Where do babies come from?"**

Everyone sweats nervously at her question. It's not the question that make them feel uneasy, but it's her situation that makes things complicated. With the exception of Nami, everyone looks at one another wondering what to tell her without making her feel bad about herself.

Nami is the only one who tries to give an explanation. **"Let me tell you how it's done. Have you ever seen your dad make the cows give milk? First he needs a bull to-"**

Muffy and Flora quickly covers Nami's mouth tightly. Muffy then yells, **"Are you insane?! You can't explain it that way!"**

**"So then where do babies come from?"** Choco asked again.

**"Well, you see. . ."** said Muffy sheepishly. **"When a man and a woman love one another, they are supposed to get married. After living with each other for a while, a little baby grows inside the mother for a while, and gives birth to a baby."**

Choco thinks hard about Muffy's vague explanation, and asks, **"So, does my dad loves my mom?"**

They all start to look at one another once again. Everyone knows that what Choco wants more than anything in the world is a complete family. She has Yuki as a father, but no mother. Any of the girls would be more than happy to become Choco's mother, but Yuki still has no interest in marriage.

Flora walks up to Choco and pats her head. She lifts her chin up and tells her, **"Choco, what Muffy said only refers to what is _'supposed'_ to happen. But sadly, this is not always the case. Yuki doesn't remember your mother, but we all know that he cares deeply about you. Just remember that, and everything will be okay. After all, we are not related, but you are like family to all of us as well."** Flora then looks at the other girls and says, **"Am I right?"**

Everyone smiles and nods cheerfully. This makes Choco feel very happy. When she arrived in Forget-Me-Not Valley, she only wanted to find her father. But she found an entire village who are willing to care and protect her as family. She still wishes she knew who her mother is, but she is content with what she has right now.

They continued to talk for a while. Before they pass out in the hot spring, they all leave, and deliver Choco safely to the farm. Then they all part ways to their own homes. It's still early in the day, so they have a lot to do before the day ends.

However, in the villa Lumina looks through her collection of books. After what they talked about in the hot spring, she feels that she needs to check on something. She takes a book titled _"History Of Alchemy"_ out of the shelf, and opens the page about transmutation circles. She remembers the pattern on Choco's pendant clearly. The book lists many different patterns used for different types of alchemy. However, none of the circles illustrated in the book resembles a double helix like the one Choco's pendant has engraved on it.

She flips the pages looking for any information on that transmutation circle, but she doesn't find anything. She then shuts the book, and says to herself, **"How strange, this book says nothing about this type of alchemy. But I shouldn't be surprised, nothing that has anything to do with Choco had ever made any sense. I don't know why, but I can't hep but to worry. What does this all mean?"**

_To Be Continued._


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

_Fall 30, 2003_

Today is the Pumpkin Festival. But in the city, this day is better known as Halloween. A day when children dress up in costumes, and go from door to door collecting treats from their neighbors. Forget-Me-Not Valley and Mineral Town also celebrate this day meant for children.

Now that Yuki has a daughter of his own, he allows his own to participate in the festival. Sometime in the late afternoon, Choco bursts out of her home impatiently to start the festival. Today she is dressed up in a witch costume, wearing a maroon colored cape and a pointed maroon colored hat. In one hand, she carries a bag used to collect treats, and a broom in the other.

Choco takes a deep breath of the cold Fall air. Winter is coming soon, so she needs to be careful not to catch a cold. But still, she is happy that the weather is fair. Yuki comes out of the house soon afterwards, since this is a festival dedicated for children, he will stay home like all the other adults.

Choco turns around and says to Yuki, **"Okay, I'm off to go get some candy! Bye bye dad!"**

Just before Choco runs off, the words, **"Wait a second Choco!"** stops her. Choco takes a deep stressful sigh knowing full well what her father is going to say to her. He walks up to her and kneels down to her height. Choco knows that when Yuki does this, he is going to tell her something serious.

**"Okay Choco, before you leave to go collect candy, let's review the rules. Okay, first-"**

**"Stay on the path that we planned."** said Choco interrupting Yuki. She knows the rules by heart, so she recites them in his place. **"Don't wander off with strangers, don't cause trouble for the other villagers, make sure I say 'Thank You' every time I get a treat, always stay in a group, I'm only allowed to collect treats in Forget-Me-Not Valley and Mineral Town, and don't eat any candy until I get home." **Choco sighs and says,** "I know, we've been though this a million times already. Can I go now?"**

Yuki raises his index finger and asks,** "What about the most important rule?"**

Choco rolls her eyes and answers,** "Make sure I come home by 7 O'clock."**

Yuki smiles, and nods sending Choco off to hunt for treats. She then hugs Yuki thanking him for allowing her to go. At first, Yuki was against sending her off alone, but it's a festival, and she needs to enjoy it with the other children. As Choco runs out of the farm to join with her group, she passes Muffy who is on her way to visit Yuki.

Muffy is planning to take advantage of the fact that Yuki is alone to make a move on him. She has even brought a small bag with her filled with the tools she needs to accomplish her goal. But as Choco passes her, Muffy stops to take a long look at Choco's costume. She doesn't say anything, only stands there wondering. After a few seconds, she moves ahead to meet up with Yuki who is still waving at Choco.

After greeting one another as usual, Muffy asks curiously, **"Hey Yuki, what's up with Choco's costume? I know that it's Pumpkin Day, but why a witch? Couldn't you choose something cuter, like a panda or a rabbit?"**

**"I wanted to." **answered Yuki. **"But at the costume store, Choco wanted that costume, and nothing else. She wouldn't stop crying until I agreed to buy it for her. She may be changing, but deep inside, she's still a kid. Rather than fight with her, I just let her choose what she wanted to wear."**

**"I see."** said Muffy. She then presents Yuki with the small bag she brought with her and continues, **"Hey, I thought that you would be alone today. So how about we watch some movies?"**

**"Movies?"** asked Yuki. He then takes the bag, and checks what titles that Muffy has brought with her. They are all older titles like _"Friday the 13th", "Nightmare on Elm Street", "Halloween", _and _"Jaws"._ All horror movies from the 1970's and 1980's era.

**"It's a tradition in my hometown to watch horror movies during Halloween. Even though we are not in the city anymore, I thought that we would watch them anyway. After all, you're not doing anything but waiting for Choco to come back home."**

Yuki takes a good look at Muffy's suspiciously smiling face. He catches on quickly what she has planned. After several years of knowing her tactics, Yuki has already come up with countermeasures to all her plans.

Yuki returns the videos and says, **"That sounds like a good idea! But my living room is a bit messy, so let me clean up first, okay?"** Before Muffy answers, Yuki jets back in his house to prepare. Muffy waits outside several minutes until she gets invited inside. She becomes suspicious that she doesn't hear Yuki cleaning or moving anything around. Curious to what Yuki is really doing, she tries to press her ear to hear what's going on. But before she has a chance, Yuki opens his door. **"Sorry about that, all clean! Come inside, and we'll put something on!"**

As Yuki walks inside to prepare some popcorn, Muffy leers at him awkwardly. She knows that Yuki did not do any cleaning, but she ignores that fact now that she is finally invited into the house. After the popcorn and drinks are ready, they start with the first title, Halloween.

Meanwhile, Choco meets up with her group, Kate and Hugh. Kate is dressed up as a pink princess complete with dress and tiara. Her hair is let down as opposed to the pigtail braids that she normally has it done. Hugh is dressed up as the Hulk. Tattered shorts are the only clothing that he is wearing, and his skin is covered in green dye. For a kid his age, he is naturally buff, so there is no need for any more make up.

**"Hi there!"** Yelled Choco as she approaches her friends. **"Kate! you look so cute! Hugh. . . Who are you supposed to be?"**

Hugh plays his role and yells, **"You're asking Hulk? What Hulk look like, Einstein? Hulk just get big! Hulk strongest there is! Hulk not puny human! Hulk will smash!"** As he says his lines, he tries his best to flex his muscles to impress Choco. Both Kate and Choco then laugh at how silly Hugh is acting.

**"So Choco, what are you dressed as? A witch?"** asked Kate.

Choco nods and answers, **"Yeah! Witches are so cool! They get to use magic, fly on brooms, and say lots of crazy things. Wouldn't it be nice if I was a real witch!"**

Hugh and Kate then laugh at Choco. Hugh then beats his chest with his fists, and yells, **"Hulk wants some candy! Hulk will get everyone to give treats, or Hulk will smash!"** Everyone laughs again, and they all move to the first place on their list, the blue bar.

Choco knocks on the door of the bar, and waits patiently for someone to answer. Griffin comes out of the bar carrying a dish full of chocolate bars. Just the sight of the chocolates makes Choco drool with excitement. Everyone opens their bags to get some chocolates, and Griffin drops a bar in each of their bags. But as they're are getting their treats Choco notices that Muffy is not inside. Since she was so excited about Pumpkin Day, she failed to notice that she passed her at the farm.

Choco looks up at Griffin and says, **"Hey mister, where's Muffy?"** By now Choco has Muffy, Celia, Nami, Lumina, and Flora's name. But she still has not memorized many of the other villager's names, including Griffin.

**"Muffy went out for the evening. But you don't have to worry, I'll be here to hand out treats."**

**"But we're the only ones who live here."** commented Choco. **"Who else are you giving out chocolates to?"**

Griffin smiled and says, **"Sometimes, children from other villages and towns nearby drops by to visit the valley."** He then drops another chocolate bar in the bags and continues, **"I usually have leftovers anyway, so I'll give you all a special treat!"**

Choco and her friends then dance happily knowing that they all got extra treats. They thank Griffin for the candies, then moved to the Inn. On the way to the inn, Choco desperately tries not to eat any chocolates. She sometimes finds herself reaching in the bag, but she did promise Yuki that she will hold out until she gets home.

Back at the farm, Yuki and Muffy are watching the movie. Somewhere in the middle of the movie, Muffy takes her attention off the movie, and pays more attention to Yuki. She feels that it's a perfect opportunity to make some advances in her relationship. She notices that Yuki's hand is resting on the couch, so she moves her hand to meet his. But just before she touches his hand, Yuki pulls it out of the way to get some popcorn.

Muffy's first attempt fails, but she is far from giving up. She returns her attention to the movie, and waits for a good opportunity. She plans to wait for a horrifying moment to jump at Yuki and embrace him. As soon as a good moment arrives, she closes her eyes, and lounges at Yuki. But she soon realizes that her arms are still empty. She opens her eyes, and sees that Yuki had bent down to tie his shoe laces.

Muff is getting impatient, but she is far from giving in. She resorts to plan C, which she thought was fool-proof. She continues to watch the movie, and waits for an open moment when Yuki's full attention is on the movie. As soon as she feels that he is, she climbs on the couch slowly and quietly. She gets into position to pounce at him, and crash on the couch cushions. At that moment, she plans to kiss Yuki in the lips, and make out with him.

As soon as she was ready, she jumps! But before she lands, Yuki stands up from the couch, causing Muffy to crash on the cushions alone. Yuki turns around and says, "Sorry, I need to use the bathroom a second. You don't have to push pause, I seen this movie a dozen times."

Muffy quickly stands up and yells, **"Yuki! What is the matter with you!? Can't you be a little bit more romantic at a time like this?"**

**"Romantic? What are you talking about? We are just friends, not dating."**

**"Oh come on!"** complained Muffy. **"You're a single man, I'm a lonely girl alone in a big house. We should be doing unspeakable things to each other by now!"**

**"And that's where you're wrong!"** yelled Nami. **"You're not alone in this house."**

**"What the hell are you doing here!?"** demanded Muffy who was so preoccupied with the movie, that she never realized that someone else came into the house.

**"What are you talking about? I'm here for the party."** answered Nami.

**"Party? What party?"** asked Muffy.

Just then, the front door opens, and the other three girls start walking in Each of them carrying potato chips, candy, drinks, and other party favors. As each of them march into the house, they all chant, **"Movie Party! Movie Party!"**

At that moment, Muffy looks at Yuki. Yuki smiles back at Muffy while making a victory sign with his hands. She then realized that instead of cleaning the house like he said he was going to do, he invited the other four girls over to watch movies with them. That way, there is nothing that Muffy could do to him while everyone is present.

Muffy then stamps her feet yelling, **"Yuki, this is so not fair!"**

A couple of hours later, Choco and her friends finally finished raiding the village for treats. They are now on their way across the valley heading toward the dock. A boat waits for passengers at the beach for people heading to Mineral Town. Choco gets on the dock, she then turns around and waves at her friends yelling, **"Come on! Lets go to Mineral Town! I wanna get more candy, so lets go!"**

Kate and Hugh look at one another. The idea is tempting, but they know they can't. Kate then looks at Choco, and says, **"Sorry, but mom and dad said I can't go to Mineral Town."**

Hugh flexes his muscles and yells, **"Hulk can't go! Hulk gets mad! You don't want to see Hulk when he gets mad!"**

Kate then pulls Hugh's ear and drags him away saying, **"Come on, stop being a ham. We have to go home, and show our parents our candy."**

**"Ouch, okay, I get it! Stop pulling my ear!"** said Hugh dropping the Hulk act.

Choco laughs, and waves goodbye at her friends. She then boards the boat, and takes off to Mineral Town. Yuki did say that she can't go alone, but she has friends waiting in Mineral Town, so she'll be fine. She hasn't been there very often, but she became friends with the locals quickly. At the Mineral Town dock, she meets up with two other children about her same age.

One of them is Stu, a young boy with jet black hair. For pumpkin day, he is dressed up in a bear costume. He feels embarrassed wearing the childish plush outfit, but Choco finds it very cute. The other new friend is a little girl named May. She is a year younger with black hair as well. However, she is dressed up as a fairy princess. Complete with a green frilly dress, butterfly wings, and a hair band with bug antennae.

**"Hi Stu, Hi May!"** greeted Choco to her new friends. **"I love your outfits! They are so cute!"**

Stu's face turns red. **"Thanks, I like your costume too."** he said. Like Hugh, Stu also has a small crush on Choco, but he has yet to say anything.

Choco grabbed their hands and ran into town yelling, **"Come on! I want to get some candies now!"** Then they all follow Choco through town collecting goodies.

Back at the farm, Yuki is having a good time watching movies with his own friends. Everyone yells, cheers, and jumps at every exciting moment the movies brings. The only person who is not enjoying the party is Muffy who is sulking on the couch. She was looking forward to spending the afternoon alone with Yuki. But Yuki still refuses to go out with any of the girls, so Muffy is out of luck.

One of the last places that Choco, Stu and May visits is the Chicken Farm where Popuri lives. They knock on her door, and Popuri comes out. She becomes excited as soon as she sees Choco's face. She then turns around to call the rest of her family over to greet Choco.

**"Hi there Choco!"** cheered Popuri and Rick.

**"Welcome Choco, you are just so adorable!"** said Lillia.

The other two feel slightly left out, but they don't play too much mind to it. They are more interested in candies than attention.

**"Hi there! It's Pumpkin Day, can we have some treats?"** said Choco.

**"Of course you can!"** said Popuri cheerfully. She then runs into the house, and returns placing a treat in each of the bags.

Everyone checks the treats Popuri placed into their bags. But none of them are satisfied with what they got. Everyone pulls out the egg Popuri put in their bags, and Choco said,** "This is not candy. . ."**

Popuri then answers, **"What? But eggs are so good for you!"**

She was only kidding with them. Rick then came out with a tray of real treats, and he put some chocolates in their bags. After that, they went over to the Yodel ranch, and the treat hunt was then officially over. Choco says goodbye to her friends in Mineral Town, and take a boat back to Forget-Me-Not Valley.

On the way back home, Choco stopped by the pond where she takes a break. She then checks the time, it is now 6:20pm. Plenty of time before Choco needs to go home. She had so much fun at the festival, she doesn't want to go home just yet. Without thinking, Choco reaches for a chocolate, and unwraps it.

Just before eating it, she stops herself and says, **"Wait, dad said that I should wait until I get home before I eat any chocolates. Dad trust me to follow his rules, so I better put this away."** But as she rewraps the chocolaty treat, the chocolate smell in the air makes her change her mind. She knows that she shouldn't, but the temptation is just too great. **"I'll just have one, dad won't notice."**

So she eats the chocolate bar without hesitation. After gobbling down the milk chocolate treat, she then licks her fingers to remove any evidence that she was eating candy before she returned home. But then, something unusual happened to Choco. A huge jolt of pain ran through her body, she started feeling hot and cold flashes in her head. She becomes dizzy, and standing up becomes difficult. Soon afterwards, her body becomes numb, and she collapses on the ground.

**"It's about time!"** said the Witch Princess who is watching Choco from her crystal ball.

At 8:00pm, Yuki is pacing around the house nervously. All the girls stands by watching Yuki as he walks in circles wearing a hole in the ground. They all know who he is waiting for. They all know that Choco promised to be at home an hour ago. At this point, everyone thinks that Choco is playing hookie, and decided on her own to get more candy. They have no idea what is really happening.

**"Hey Yuki, are you okay?"** asked Lumina.

**"No, I am not okay."** snapped Yuki. **"Choco is late, she promised to be here already, where in the world is she!"**

**"I'm sure she's fine."** said Nami who is laid back on the couch. **"I bet she is still in Mineral Town hanging out with the folk down there. It's not often that they get to see your daughter, so someone down there might have invited her to a party. She's a kid, and kids always make their parents worry."**

Yuki stops for a moment to say, **"Even so, she should have called. I tell you, when she gets back, she is grounded for a week. No TV, no chocolate, and no hanging out with Kate and Hugh. And this time, I mean it!"**

Everyone looks at one another, and giggle at Yuki's comment. Yuki then look sat them and asks, **"What's so funny?"**

Muffy chuckles a bit longer before saying, **"Nothing. But you're starting to sound like a real parent these days. I don't know about the rest, but I'm impressed."**

Yuki ignores them, and start to walk around the room again. Several hours later, Yuki starts to become scared. All the other girls also start to worry. It's already 11:00pm, and it's pitch black outside. Everyone should have returned home, but everyone refuses to budge until Choco gets home.

**"Where is she?"** asked Yuki. **"Being late is one thing, but this is too much!"**

**"I agree that it is rather late. It's already past Choco's bedtime, and she is till not home."** said Celia.

Everyone continues to wait, but then Yuki looks out the window, and realizes that it has already started to snow. Yuki couldn't wait around any longer. He knows that he should have been looking for Choco much sooner, but he thought he could at least trust her enough to come home on her own. So he runs over to the front door, and puts his jacket on.

**"Yuki, are you going out to look for her?"** asked Flora.

**"Yeah I have no idea what happened to her, but she would never come home this late!"**

**"Is there anything we can do?"** asked Muffy.

**"Call someone! Get the Mineral Town police here now, and have a search party formed! Get as many people involved as possible! Also, call Grant and Chris, make sure that their kids are home!"** Yuki then stormed out and ran around the valley looking for Choco. He first checks all of Choco's favorite places, but he cannot find her. He then pays a visit to Kate and Hugh's home. Everyone is safe and sound, but none of them has seen Choco since she left to Mineral Town.

Since Yuki knows that Choco has at least gone to Mineral Town, he decides to check there next. He is not sure if there is a boat that will take him there at that hour, but he still wants to check anyway. He cuts through Patrick and Cassey's home, then went by Cody's trailer. On the way to the beach, Yuki found himself at the pond. There he noticed the body of a little girl lying on the ground. He knew immediately that it was Choco.

Panicked and frantic, Yuki ran to Choco. She did not move when Yuki calls her name which only makes him even more frightened. As soon as he reaches her, he picks her up, and carries her like a baby. He then shouts, **"CHOCO!! ARE YOU OKAY!!"**

Choco opens her eyes a little bit, and struggles an answer, **". . . Dad?"**

**"Choco, what's wrong with you!? Speak to me!"**

**"Dad. . . I don't feel so good. . . I can't move. . . My body."**

Yuki embraces Choco tightly wiping off the snow off of her saying, **"Don't worry Choco, I'm here now. I'm going to get some help, please hang on!"**

Yuki hurries back home. He is frightened and severely upset. He wants to cry, but he needs to be strong. Choco is in trouble, and he has no idea what is happening to her. All he wants to do now is get her out of the cold.

In the farm, Muffy is on the phone contacting police from Mineral Town. Not so long afterwards, Yuki bursts in carrying Choco in his arms. Everyone is shocked to see Choco in this state. They all circle around Yuki saying, **"What happened?" "What's wrong with Choco?"**

**"I DON'T KNOW DAMMIT!!"** the sudden burst of Yuki's voice forces everyone to step away from him. Yuki takes several deep breaths, but he does not calm down. **"Please! Call the doctor! Get the doctor here right now! Choco is not feeling well, and we need a doctor to take a look at her!"**

Everyone nods, and they run out to bring the doctor. Since it's so late, they know that Doctor Hardy will not answer his phone. So the easiest thing to do is drag him back to the farm. As they all left to retrieve the doctor, Yuki brings Choco to her room. He covers her so that she could be warm, but Choco's condition does not improve. He just kneels down before her, and prays that nothing happens to her until the doctor arrives.

**To Be Continued.**


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

_Fall 30, 2003 (Continued from Chapter 16)_

Yuki and the other women wait outside Choco's room as Doctor Hardy examines her. Sitting in the couch, Yuki trembles in fear nearly breaking down emotionally. He deeply regrets allowing her to venture alone during the Pumpkin Festival. He feels that if he didn't, then there might have been something he could have done sooner. It is now late in the evening, Choco has a bad fever, and the doctor is doing all he can to see if he can help her.

_Winter 1, 2003_

Sometime after midnight, Doctor Hardy finally walks out of Choco's room. Everyone wants to know if little Choco is going to be okay, and nobody wants to know more than Yuki. So they gather around the doctor, and Yuki asks, **"Is she going to be okay? What's wrong with her? Why is this happening?"**

Hardy tilts his head down in shame and shakes his head no. This only causes Yuki to panic even more. The look in his eye resembles the day when Yuki's mother was ill, and the doctor knew that she was not going to make it. Even though Yuki may not like the answer that he is going to hear, he still needs to know what's happening to her. Even if it's only going to cause him pain.

Doctor Hardy lifts his head up and says, **"She has a terrible fever. I tried giving her medicine, but the fever will not go down. Anything else I do only makes it worse. I'm sorry, I don't have the equipment to help her."**

Yuki clenches a fist in order to try to keep his feeling in check. He feels upset hearing that a doctor cannot help someone, especially a little girl. However, nothing that is happening is Hardy's fault, so he needs to make sure that he does not take his anger out of him. Instead, he takes a deep breath and says, **"Doctor please. I know that when she first arrived, I had a tough time believing that she is my daughter. But whether I want to believe it or not, she is my responsibility. She is my family. And I promised her that I would not let anything happen to her. So, if there is anything I can do for her, please tell me."**

All five girls look at one another. They all are amazed at how fast Yuki transformed from an available bachelor to a father. But at the same time, they feel sad that Yuki has to go through this. They all wish that they can do something to help him, but they all are clueless at what to do.

Doctor Hardy takes a deep breath and says, **"The only thing I can think of is going to the clinic in Mineral Town. Doctor Trent may not be as experienced as I am, but at least his equipment may determine the cause of her illness."**

**"Then what are we waiting for?"** asked Yuki. **"Lets go to Mineral Town right now!"**

Hardy shakes his head no and continues, **"We can't just rush over right away. First of all, there is no boat that will take anyone to Mineral Town at this hour. Second of all, Choco is suffering a high fever and it's snowing. If we take her outside in this cold weather, she may die."**

Yuki feels that the doctor is right. It's not the best idea to leave the house with an ill child while it's cold. But still, Yuki does not want to sit around and do nothing. He runs into Choco's room, and grabs some of the warm clothing that he had bought for her in preparation for the Winter days. As Yuki gathers her clothes, Choco looks at him and says, **"Dad? What's going on?"**

Yuki carries her coat, snow pants, hat and boots over to her and says, **"Don't worry Choco. I'm going to take you to a clinic where you'll get the treatment you need. Just be strong for me, okay?"**

Choco nods. After patting her on the head, he changes her into the clothes to prepare for the journey to Mineral Town. Even if Hardy said not to take her outside, Yuki feels that waiting any longer may be just as risky. After Choco is fully dressed for the cold, Yuki carries her on his back. He hopes that carrying her like this will keep her body warm. He wraps her arms around his neck, and he holds on to her legs around his waist. Before they start heading off, he says, **"Okay Choco, this is going to be a long walk. But I need you to hold on tight, and don't let go. Think you can do that for me?"**

Choco nods again. Seeing that he is ready to go, he walks out of Choco's room carrying her. As the door opens, everyone gasps realizing what is Yuki planning to do. The five women wants to say something, but they know that once Yuki makes up his mind, there is no way to change his mind. Doctor Hardy on the other hand wants to stop him. He walks in front of him blocking his path saying, **"Yuki! Where do you think you're going with that child? Not only will you be putting her health at risk, but you'll be risking yours as well. As the doctor of Forget-Me-Not Valley, I cannot allow you to take her outside!"**

**"Move out of the way Hardy! I'm taking her to Mineral Town, even if I have to do it by force!"** The look in Yuki's eye was serious and determined. Doctor Hardy couldn't help but cringe fearing that Yuki may get violent. Seeing that he said too much, Yuki takes a deep breath and says, **"Listen, I already lost most of my family already. I don't want to lose any more. Just please, let me go."**

Doctor Hardy nods and moves out of the way. He wants to stop him, but he can see now that it's no use. Yuki is not a child anymore, he is a grown adult with a kid of his own. All anyone can do right now is pray for him, and hopes that Choco will be okay.

Since there is no way to travel to Mineral Town by boat, the only other way is the long way through the path on the eastern side of Forget-Me-Not Valley The walk will take many hours, but Choco will at least get to the clinic sooner than waiting for the next day. As he walks through the cold roads in the middle of darkness, Choco has fallen asleep on Yuki's back, but she is still alive.

As they are traveling, the Witch Princess watches them in her crystal ball. She feels that her plan is a complete success, and she is enjoying every single moment of Yuki's torment. As she watches them head to Mineral town, she says to herself, **"Go ahead, run to Mineral Town! It's pointless, cause in a few days, Choco will run out of life. I can't wait to see the look on your face when that happens!"**

Yuki arrives in Mineral Town at five in the morning. Choco is still asleep, and her condition has not changed. He rushes over to the clinic as quickly as he could. He is exhausted, but he cannot stop now. At the clinic, he pounds at the door forcing Doctor Trent to wake up and open his doors. Trent was upset that he was forced to wake up early, but he quickly gets over it seeing that a child needs help.

Trent takes Choco in his care, and allows Yuki to rest. Even though he is lying on the sofa, he is far too worried about Choco to sleep. At nine in the morning, Nurse Elli arrives at the clinic to help Trent. They both run a lot of tests to find out what is wrong with her, but they both have very little luck. Eventually, Hardy also joins them in the search for the cause of Choco's illness.

At around three in the afternoon, Doctor Trent finally goes over to Yuki to deliver the news. Yuki gets up desperate for answers and approaches him yelling, **"How is Choco?! Is she going to be okay?"**

Doctor Trent remains silent for a moment. His silence only makes Yuki worry even more. After taking a deep breath, Trent finally says, **"Yuki, what I'm going to tell you may not make sense. But I want you to keep calm, and listen carefully."**

**"SPIT IT OUT ALREADY!!"** screamed Yuki desperate for answer.

After sighing, Trent says as calmly as possible, **"Choco is dying."**

**"I can see that! But from what?!"**

**"Old age."** answered doctor Trent.

His disturbing answer angers Yuki. At first he trembles unsure how to react. Then all of his anger bursts out causing him to grab Doctor Trent by his collar. As he is shaking him, he yells, **"Old age?! What the hell are you talking about?! She's only 10 years old!!"**

Using all of his might, Doctor Trent forces Yuki to release him. Fixing his collar, he answers, **"I know it sounds impossible. As a doctor, the mere thought that a child may be passing from old age seems ridiculous. But we examined her for hours, and what we found cannot be explained by mere logic. She may look like a child from the outside, but she is rapidly aging on the inside. Possibly a couple of years every day. I have no idea if she knew about this strange condition of hers or not. All I do know is that there is no way we can stop it."**

**"So you mean. . . You can't save her?"** asked Yuki fearing the worst.

**"I'm sorry, but Choco's lifespan was always short since the day she was born. Based on her condition, I can only assume she will only live a few more days. I wish there was something I can do."**

Yuki feels devastated hearing those words. The only people that should be able to help Choco had already given up. And if they could not do anything, there is even less that Yuki could do at this point. Moving Doctor Trent out of the way, he walks over to Choco ignoring Doctor Hardy and the nurse. He takes a blanket, and wraps Choco so that she could stay warm on the trip back to Forget-Me-Not Valley.

Yuki carries Choco like a newborn infant wrapped in a blanket as he heads to the exit. As he leaves, Doctor Trent asks, **"Yuki, where do you think you're going? I understand that you're upset, but you should leave her here!"**

Yuki stops for a moment to respond, **"You said yourself that there isn't anything you can do for her. In that case, there is no point of her being here. I want to care for her myself. Goodbye."** And with that, Yuki leaves the clinic, and heads to the beach where he takes a boat back home.

_Winter 2, 2003_

After Choco was brought back home, Yuki has been taking special care of her. At this point, he has not been paying as much attention to the farm as he usually does. Luckily, nothing grows in the Winter season, so he spends a lot of time caring for little Choco.

Around noon, Yuki walks into Choco's room carrying some chocolates. He knows that sweets is not the best thing for her to eat at this point, but he wants to make her as happy as possible. Choco is resting on her bed when he walks in, but she is still awake. She looks over at Yuki, and smiles. Being bedridden is very boring, but Choco is very happy when her father spends time with her.

At this point, Choco is still unaware that the doctors said that there is a good chance that she may not make it. She feels that she just has a simple fever, that's all. Yuki doesn't want to tell her either, mainly because he doesn't want her to panic. But if he has to tell her, he cannot deny her the truth.

He sits on her bed, and pats her on the head. He smiles at her and says, **"Hi there, how are you feeling today?"** Choco nods, letting Yuki know that she doesn't feel any worse than the last time he checked. This at least make Yuki feel a bit relieved.

**"I got you some chocolates. Have some."** Choco nods once again, and sits up to eat the chocolate. However, eating is not as easy for her as Yuki believes. Choco has become so weak from her illness that she cannot bite down as hard as she normally could. Yuki watches her sadly as she struggles with her chocolate trying hard to break off a bite sized piece. After a minute, Choco finally chips a corner of the chocolate and begins gnawing at it. But the chocolate was still a bit hard, so Choco needs to wait till it softens to eat it.

Yuki could not stand just watching as Choco has a hard time with her favorite food. He takes the rest of the chocolate bar into the kitchen, and puts it into a blender. After pouring milk, he blends the chocolate to make chocolate milk. Choco prefers straight chocolate, but chocolate milk is easier to consume in her state.

Yuki returns to Choco's bedroom, and gives her the chocolate milk. Choco smiles at her father as she sips the milk chocolate drink. Yuki smiles back as he pats her in the head, giving her the feeling of comfort. Halfway through the drink, Choco says, **"Dad. . . Can I say something to you?"**

**"What is it Choco?"**

Choco remains quiet. She feels nervous saying it to him. She has never told him before knowing full well she should have earlier. But since she has been feeling ill for some time, and she knows deep inside what may happen to her, she feels that she has to say it now. So she says, **". . . I love you dad."**

Those simple words pierced Yuki's heart like a knife. The words he has heard over and over from the other girls before, but it feels different hearing them from a child that is supposed to be his own. No words can describe how he feels at that moment. But this only means that when her time is up, it will only hurt even more. He wished that he never heard them, but at the same time, he is happy to hear them. Such conflicting emotions he had never felt before. Emotions that he thought he could avoid.

Choco fell asleep about an hour later. Yuki leaves her room to allow her to rest. As soon as he leaves, he finds Nami in the living room waiting. Yuki's wipes his tear filled eyes as he walks up to Nami with a straight face. The last thing he wants to do is show weakness to others.

**"How is she doing?"** asked Nami worried about Choco's health.

Yuki shakes his head no as he responds, **"I don't know. She doesn't seem to be getting any worse, but she's not getting any better either."**

He turns around, and faces Choco's closed door. The words the doctor told him yesterday is floating in his mind, he cannot stop the tears from building on his face. **"I was so afraid of something like this may happen someday. I didn't ever want to lose anyone this important to me. I'm scared, I don't know what to do."**

Nami's arms wraps around Yuki's waist. She is embracing him from behind trying to comfort him. Normally, Yuki would avoid this type of contact, but he wants to be held at that moment.

**"I see."** said Nami. **"So this is why you never wanted to marry anyone. All this time, I thought you were just being stubborn. I'm so sorry."**

**"It's okay. I'm sorry I kept it a secret from everyone. I didn't mean to be so stubborn, but I didn't want people to think I was weak or a coward."**

Yuki can feel his back getting a bit wet. As Nami is rubbing her face against his back, her tears are collecting on his shirt. Nami also feels the same as Yuki. She always tried her best to put up a strong face. But now that Choco is ill, she finds it hard to hide her feelings. Yuki couldn't help but smile and say, **"You know, you've changed so much since we first met. You used to be so quiet and cold, it was hard for anyone to talk to you. But now you're like a normal girl. You smile, you're showing off your other feelings, and you're more open."**

**"You've changed too. Ever since Choco came into our lives, you have changed so much. You're a much better person than you have ever been before."** Nami tightens her embrace as she continues, **"Choco will be okay right? Please tell me she'll be okay."**

**"All we can do is pray."** said Yuki. He wants to tell her that she will be okay, but this is something that he cannot promise her. Nami already knows that if Yuki loses Choco, he will change drastically. He may never recover from the shock of losing a daughter. So as she embraces him, she prays silently for Choco's health.

_Winter 3, 2003_

Choco did not wake up the next day. Her fever has gotten worse overnight. Doctor Hardy came over to see if he can help. Lumina also came over for emotional support. Yuki sits on his couch terrified of what the results may be. Lumina holds his trembling hand as she waits with him. Nami had already told all the girls why Yuki never wanted to get married. Everyone is saddened by the news, but they all decided to support Yuki until the end.

As the doctor walks out the door, Lumina goes into the room to see Choco. Hardy walks up to Yuki with a sad look on his face. He doesn't want to hear the news, but he knows he has to. So he takes a deep breath and says, **"How is she? Could you do something?"**

Doctor Hardy shakes his head no, and then answers, **"Her fever has reached critical levels. She may die as early as tomorrow. I'm sorry, but there is nothing I can do."**

Tears starts to fall from Yuki's eyes. He knew the news will hurt him, but he had to hear it anyway. No amount of preparation could ever help him deal with what he is about to lose. Since the doctor cannot do anything for her, he leaves the farm. Yuki sits back on the couch placing his hands on his face. As he remains seated alone, the tears start to seep through his fingers. He only had Choco with him less than a year, and he is already losing her quickly. At this point, he is too depressed to think about much else.

**"Yuki?"** said Lumina's voice coming from Choco's bedroom. Yuki tries to wipe the tears using his sleeve, and goes over to see what does Lumina want. Even though Yuki is still trying to hide his sorrow, Yuki's eyes were too puffy from the tears to hide.

Rather than worrying about that, Lumina says,** "I think I may know what's happening to Choco."**

Yuki gasps and runs over to to see what Lumina has to show him. He is too sad and emotional, that words cannot come out of his lips at that moment. Lumina then opens her hands, and shows Yuki Choco's pendant that she always hides under her shirt. When Lumina last saw it, it was bright amber colored, now it has lost most of it's color.

Yuki picks takes the pendant, and takes a long look at it. He then looks at Lumina and asks, **"I guess this is strange. But what does this have to do with Choco's condition?"** After asking, the pendant suddenly loses a bit more color. As it does, Choco cringes with pain sending Yuki into a panic.

Lumina then takes her temperature, and sees that it has gone up to 102 degrees. At this point, Choco may lose her life any minute. But at least this tells Yuki that the pendant she always carries around has something to do with her health. So he looks at Lumina and asks, **"So, you think that this is why she is ill? This stone is making her feel sick?"**

Lumina shakes her head no and says, **"I don't know why, but I think that her pendant was keeping her alive the whole time she was living with you. But it seems to be wearing out little by little."**

**"Is there a way how we can keep this thing from running out of energy?"** asked Yuki.

**"I'm sorry. But if there was a way, then the only person who would know that is her mother." **Yuki looks down sadly. The only person in the whole world who can save Choco is the person Yuki does not know. He had already tried back in Spring to find out who might have been Choco's mother, but he came up with no answers. So in Summer, he gave up the search, and accepted the responsibilities of a father figure. He is now wishing that he had never given up the search for her mother.

Lumina pats Choco on her head and says, **"I'm sorry Choco. I wish there was something I could do. If only I was your mother, I would be able to help you. I'm so sorry."**

After a few minutes, Lumina had to return home. She wants to stay, but Romana only allowed her a short while to visit Yuki and Choco. Yuki sits in his couch lost in thought. So many confusing things are running through his head as he sat. Who is Choco's mother? How did Choco find him? Is there some way to help her? What will he do if he cannot help her? And most importantly, will he be able to handle living in the farm where both his father and Choco had passed away? He is so frustrated and upset that he just wants to pull his hair out.

About 30 minutes after Lumina had left, Muffy, Celia, and Flora drops by. The door was unlocked, so they let themselves in. They didn't get a warm greeting like they usually did. Instead, they found Yuki sitting next to Choco still hoping that she may recover.

**"Yuki?"** Muffy's sudden voice has gotten his attention. Everyone felt sad to see Yuki's face so puffy from crying so long. They feel sad as well, but they need to be strong for Yuki's sake. **"Um, you have some visitors."**

Yuki's expression does not change. The girls move to aside to allow the visitors to pass through. One by one, the visitors of Mineral Town passes through Choco's bedroom door carrying flowers, _"Get Well Soon"_ cards, and other gifts to her bed. Yuki is surprised to see them come in so suddenly.

As Popuri passes by, Yuki asks, **"Hey, what's going on?"**

**"We heard from Doctor Trent."** answered Popuri. **"We're all praying for Choco's health. I know that we all don't know her very well, but she is your daughter. You're like family to us, that makes her family too."**

Yuki was moved by everyone's kindness. Soon after the villagers from Mineral Town left, The villagers of Forget-Me-Not Valley came over. They all brought candles and said a prayer hoping that she can recover. The odds are slim to none, but they still have hope.

_Winter 4, 2003_

Choco's pendant has lost most of what color it already had around noon. Choco's life hangs on a single thread that may break any second. All five girls sit by Choco's bed, and continues to pray. Even if praying is hopeless at that moment, they still want to be there for her.

Yuki holds the pendant in his hands watching the last of the amber color fade slowly away. At that point, he wishes that he had just a little more time. He feels that if he did, he would have known that this may happen, and he might have prevented it. Choco's life is slipping away at his fingertips, and he is clueless on how to help her.

As he hold the stone in his hand with the leather string hanging, he prays, **"God, please. If you're listening to me, I need a miracle. I know I'm not the most religious person in the world, but I need your help. Please, if there is a way I can save Choco, please tell me. We've been through so much since she came here, I can't lose her now. So god please, if you're listening, help me."**

He opens his hands, and takes a look at the pendant. The stone has not gotten any better, which means that Choco has not gotten any better either. Seeing that a miracle is out of the question, he shuts his eyes says to himself, **"Dad, please help me."**

A teardrop fell on the stone. A moment later, the stone glows with a mysterious light. Yuki opens his eyes and stares at the stone. He has no idea what is going on, whether it's good or bad. Even the Witch Princess who is watching from her hut is surprised to see the light. As she watches she yells, **"What's going on!? Why is this happening!?"**

The light continues to shine for a minute longer. After the light fades, the stone on the pendant regains not only all of it's color, but the amber color was deeper and brighter than it has ever been before. Yuki was too scared to check if this is a good thing or a bad thing. Is Choco alive or dead? At that moment, he couldn't move his own body.

**"Yuki!!"** cried the voices of all five girls. **"Choco's fever is gone!!"**

After hearing that, Yuki rushes over to Choco's bedroom to see what's going on. Choco is still breathing. Yuki feels her forehead, and she is no longer burning with a fever. Soon after that, Choco opens her eyes, and stares at Yuki. She then opened her moth, and says, **"Dad?"**

Yuki strokes her hair and says, **"Choco, are you okay? Are you still feeling sick?"**

Choco smiles and says, **"I feel fine dad. But I'm hungry, can I have some chocolate?"**

Feeling overjoyed, Yuki picks Choco up, and hugs her tightly. The other girls try to calm him down. They are unsure if moving Choco so soon was a good idea. But Choco laughs cheerfully which is a sign that she is healthy.

Back at the hut, the Witch Princess stamps her feet angrily yelling, **"How, how, how!? How is she still alive!? I made sure that I only gave her enough life to last this long, there should be no way that she could be revived!. . . Unless. . ."**

After thinking for a moment, she rushes over to her shelf where she stores many of her ingredients. She takes a small pouch, and rushes over to the crystal ball. She opens the pouch and pours some golden sand on the crystal ball. She then uses her finger to draw a pentagram on the ball, causing it to glow. Staring hard into the crystal ball, she replays the moment when the stone was shining brightly. With the help of the golden sand, she could see another person in the room with Yuki. A person that cannot see with the naked eye, a spirit.

**"IT'S YOU!!"** the Witch Princess screamed to the top of her lungs. She picks up the crystal ball and begins to shake it furiously yelling, **"How dare you interfere with my plans you little bastard! Why the hell are you here?! Why you. . ."** She then throws the crystal ball across the room screaming with all her might, **"YOU SHOULDN'T BE HERE!!"**

The crystal ball shatters against the wall. She takes a few minutes to calm herself before rushing over to the bookshelf. She grabs the _"Arcane Alchemy"_ book out of the shelf, and recalls the shadow spirit she summoned earlier.

The spirit looks at her and says, **"Well well, looks like High Alchemist Witch Princess has summoned me once again. So, what can I do for you?"**

**"Just can it Haljia!"** yelled Witch Princess. **"You know damn well why I summoned you. The lifespan of the Homunculus named Choco has changed, I want to know by how much?"**

The shadow spirit took a moment to think, then responds, **"The Homunculus named Choco's minimum lifespan is now 69 years, 21 days, and 9 hours."**

After hearing the news, the Witch Princess screams to the top of her lungs and starts tugging on her own hair. The shadow spirit laughs out loud, and goes back into the darkness where it came from. After calming herself a few minutes later, she takes a few deep breaths and says, **"Well, at least I know why my magic never worked on Yuki before. He has a guardian angel! Well, I can fix that!"**

She grabs her _"Arcane Alchemy"_ book once again, and starts flipping through the pages looking for an alchemic spell. She stops after seeing a spell called _"Soul Siphon"_ somewhere in the back. The spell is highly forbidden, but at this point she doesn't care.

As she reads the requirements of the spell, she says, **"I'll make that Yuki suffer even if I'll have to send Choco back to the abyss where she came from myself. . . By force!"**

**To be continued.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

_Winter 8, 2003_

Several days has passed since Choco suddenly recovered from her illness. To everyone's surprise, Choco has made a full recovery, even though she was at the brink of losing her life. Yuki still has no clue as to what happened to her, or why did it happen in the first place. Fearing that she may suddenly fall ill once again, he has not taken an eye off of Choco since then.

It is now 9:00pm, Yuki has just tucked Choco in bed for the evening. But before he leaves her alone, he checks her temperature, asks several health related questions, and makes her take some vitamins. Choco feels happy that Yuki is paying more attention to her, but the constant smothering is making her feel slightly uncomfortable.

**"Dad, come on! I'm telling you, I'm fine!"** said Choco trying to get Yuki to calm down.

**"Hey, I'm sorry. I'm just making sure. You know, I do get worried about you!"** replied Yuki. He then continues to examine Choco for a while longer until he is completely satisfied. He then pats Choco on the head and says, **"Okay, I'm going to bed now. If you suddenly feel ill, or anything happens, just yell."**

Choco nods, and then places her head on her pillow and falls asleep quickly. Even though Yuki said that he was going to his room, he remains next to her door for a bit longer in case something happens. But after 10 minutes without incident, he finally returns to his room, and throws himself on his bed.

Even though Choco seems healthy, the thought that Choco may suffer another strange fever keeps him awake. Between the overwhelming fear of Choco dying, and the nightmares in his sleep, Yuki cannot sleep. When Choco was in danger, there was little that he could do to help her. He has no idea what saved her last time, and he is not even sure if it can save her next time.

Instead of trying to get some sleep, Yuki returns to the living room with his photo album in his hands. He grabs the phone and then says to himself, **"I can't take this anymore! If I don't find out what caused Choco to suffer that fever earlier, I just might go crazy! The only person who can tell me would have to be her mother. So I'll have to try to find her all over again!"**

Yuki opens the photo album to the first page. The first photograph of his family when he was a child causes him to pause and stare for a while. Every time Yuki sees that photograph of his mother and father, he becomes very emotional. But now that Choco is with him, he becomes even more sentimental looking at her mother's face that resembles Choco so much.

After a few minutes, he snaps out of his trance and continues on to the other photos of the years before he moved into Forget-Me-Not Valley. He calls every friend he knew, and asked about any possible women that he might have had an intimate relationship with. But after several dozen phone calls, every answer came out the same. Nobody knew of anyone that Yuki has ever dated or had any relationship with.

After getting past all the pictures of the distant past, he finds himself looking at some more recent pictures of his life in Forget-Me-Not Valley. Even though he knows that he is supposed to be looking for Choco's mother, but he is mesmerized by the memories he made in the valley. How he met each of his five female friends one by one, and how hard each of them tried to get him to go out with them.

He laughs as he relives his memories, and continues to flip through the pages of time. But as he flips the pages, he finds something unusual. One of his photographs of himself is missing from the photo album. The photograph was glued on, so there was no way that it could have fallen off by itself. And by the ripped page, he could tell that someone has intentionally taken it.

Yuki scratches his head and says to himself, **"That's odd. . . Who could have taken this picture? Could Choco have taken it for some reason?"**

Suddenly, Yuki hears Choco screaming from her room. What surprises him the most is that the scream sounds more like someone is attacking her, and she is calling for help. He quickly jumps out of the chair, and bursts into Choco's room to see what's happening. He gasps to find a young woman with dirty blond hair wearing a long cape inside of Choco's room.

**"Who the hell are you!?"** demanded Yuki. All the strange woman does is stare at Yuki with her red eyes, and grin wickedly. The wind from the open window blows the cape aside revealing Choco unconscious in her right arm.

**"Choco!!"** Yells Yuki, but there is no response from her. He then leers at the woman angrily and yells, **"Let her go you . . . !!"** Without finishing his own sentence, he charges at the woman in an attempt to rescue Choco. But before Yuki comes close, she waves her hands, and vanishes into thin air along with Choco.

The kidnapping of Choco devastates Yuki. He falls to his knees and panics. He is unsure what was more frightening, Choco's kidnapping, or the fact that a blond woman Yuki has never met appeared out of nowhere and vanished as quickly as she came.

Yuki snaps out of his trance after a moment. Just kneeling in Choco's room will not help him get her back. He needs to find some way to find out who that woman is, and find out why she took her. The first thing he does is leave the farm, and run around the valley waking everyone up from their slumber. Just about everyone is annoyed that Yuki has waken them up so late at night, but seeing how frantic Yuki is, they don't make a big fuss about it.

Everyone gathers outside of Yuki's farm drowsy and no clue as to what is going on. But after everyone has gathered, Yuki takes a deep breath and announces, **"Everyone, Please! I need all your help! A little while ago, someone has broken into my house and kidnapped Choco!"**

Everyone gasps in shock. They all mumble at one another for a few minutes. They all have lived in peace for so long, no one is even sure as to what to do in case of this type of an emergency. Nobody in the valley could ever imagine that anyone could be capable of kidnapping a child in the middle of a small village.

**"Do you know who did it?"** asked Muffy concerned for Choco's welfare.

Yuki shook his head no and says, **"I have no idea. I have never seen this woman before. She just appeared in my house, and escaped with Choco."** After he said that, everyone stares at one another, and starts mumbling. **"What? Does anyone know anything that I don't know?"**

Lumina was the only one who had the courage to tell Yuki. **"Um, you said it was a woman right? Could it be that she was her. . . Mother?"**

**"No way!!"** yelled Yuki. **"There is no way that she could be Choco's mother. First of all, she doesn't look anything like her. And she looks even younger than me! About 20, maybe 21 years old tops! And I would never forget what she looks like! She has long blond curly hair, these blood red eyes, and she was dressed so strange. There is no way I could have met her before, and not recognize her!"**

**"How did she escape from your house?"** Asked Nami.

Yuki hesitates for a moment. He knows that what he is about to say is almost too crazy to believe. But even so, it was the truth. **"I don't know how she escaped really. I was about to stop her, but she just suddenly vanished from my house. Like magic!"**

Everyone goes silent. Yuki knew that they would react the way they are now. A woman appearing in someone's house to kidnap a child, then vanish like magic is something a madman would say. But no matter how insane it sounds, he doesn't know what else to say to them.

But moving through the crowd, Romana comes forward. She the looks up at Yuki and asks, **"Can you describe this woman in better detail? Like what she was wearing?"**

Yuki takes a moment to think about his answer. He only saw her for less than a minute, but he remembers what she wore very clearly. **"Um, she had this cape on that looks like it was made of animal skins, some purple tunic-like dress, and animal skin boots. Strange taste in clothing I would have to say."**

Romana nods and responds, **"I know who took your daughter. It was the Witch Princess!"**

**"Do you know who this person is?"** asked Lumina.

**"Indeed I do. We first met when I was just a young woman. Back then, this was just an empty valley with the exception of a small hut resting on the hill. I bought the property where my villa stands today, and I was about to demolish that old hut. Little that I knew, someone lives in that old hut. A woman who time itself cannot touch, a witch!"**

**"A WITCH!?"** everyone yelled together.

**"That's right, a real witch."** continues Romana. **"Even though she is a witch, I felt that she was harmless. So I decided to cancel the demolition of her home, and build my villa next to it instead. As time passed, more and more people came to live here in the valley. This upset the witch, but she made a promise not to harm anyone in exchange that I leave her home untouched."**

**"But you built the villa 50 years ago."** said Lumina. **"Why does she still look so young after all these years?"**

Romana sighs and says, **"She may appear young, but she may be the oldest living person in the entire planet. In fact, I did some research on her hut, and it seems like she's been living there even before the Witch Hunt. Meaning that she may be older than 200 years old!"**

Yuki steps forward and asks, **"Miss Romana, do you know where the with is right now?"**

**"The only place she can hide in is the old hut next to my villa."** she answered.

Without hesitating, Yuki runs to the villa as fast as his legs can take him. The villagers then follow him, just in case they can do anything to help. As Yuki runs, he asks himself many questions in his head. Like, who is that woman? Why did she take Choco? Why is it that after nearly four years of living in the valley, he has never even seen or heard from this person who lived in the valley the whole time.

Yuki arrives in the villa in record time. He finds the old hut standing in the corner of the garden almost hidden by the night. Without wasting any time, he runs over to the hut, and tries to open the door. Because the door is locked, he breaks it down instead. His eyes widen almost in a terrified way as soon as he steps inside.

He finds the witch chanting some sort of language he cannot understand. On the ground, he finds Choco lying on the floor still unconscious. There are some symbols glowing out of the ground around where Choco lies. But as strange and wicked as things seem, Yuki walks in yelling, **"Witch!!"**

The Witch Princess looks up at Yuki and says, **"Oh, hi there Yuki. I'm glad that you can make it."**

**"Give her back!"** demanded Yuki as he is about to sprint for Choco.

**"I wouldn't come close if I were you!"** yelled the Witch Princess stopping Yuki in his tracks. **"This transmutation circle is called a Philosopher's circle. It's a very powerful type of Arcane Alchemy. If you get too close, it'll drain your soul, and you'll die."**

Just then, all the other villagers of Forget-Me-Not Valley enter the hut. As soon as everyone enters, they all look around the inside of the hut amazed that something like it existed in the valley. Books everywhere that they see as spell books, a large cauldron filled with some unknown glowing liquid, bones and other indescribable objects that can be seen as ingredients for witches brew all over the place. So dark and creepy, like in a fairy tale of the inside of a witch's house. Everyone wants to rescue Choco, but Yuki held his hand out warning everyone that it's not safe to go any closer.

**"Witch Princess!!"** yelled Romana as she passes through the crowd. **"Return that child to Yuki this instant! We had an agreement!"**

**"Well well, if it isn't Miss Romana!"** said the Witch Princess in a haughty voice. **"Well, looks like time has been rough on you within the last 50 years. But I'm afraid that I cannot return the child, she belongs to me!"**

**"What are you talking about!?"** demanded Yuki. **"That girl is my daughter!"**

The Witch princess then suddenly lets out a loud wicked laugh that pits chills in the bones of anyone who hears it. Even the children and several villagers steps away as she laughs her lungs out. As soon as she is done laughing, she stares at Yuki with an evil grin and says, **"Dear me Yuki, you really are dumber than I ever thought you were."**

**"What do you mean?!"** asked Yuki.

The Witch Princess smiles and admits, **"You see, this creature is not your child, she is not even human. She's a Homunculus!"**

**"A Homunculus? What is that?"** asked Yuki.

**"An artificial humanoid being."** answered Lumina in a shocking tone.

**"Looks like Romana's granddaughter has done her homework. Well then, allow me to explain how she was created.  
You see, after learning your greatest weakness, I decided to steal a bit of your DNA and use it in my father's greatest experiment. After stealing a lock of your hair while you slept, I placed it in a boiling pot with the ingredients I needed. After the mixture was done, I created what my father called a Miracle Potion! I only had half of the required DNA, so I decided to drink the potion, and 18 hours later on Christmas day, Choco was born!"**

This confession left everyone speechless. Everyone always wondered who was Choco's biological mother was. The whole time, she has been living right under their noses. Yuki can hardly believe it, the whole time he's been looking elsewhere. Learning that Choco's life is only a product of what everyone would call science fiction leaves him feeling frustrated and confused.

**"It doesn't make any sense."** said Yuki in an angered tone. **"You say that she was just born recently, but she's almost no different than a normal child. She says that she was born in Atland, my hometown. She knew so many things that not many people knew. She even knew what I look like before we even met. How did she know so many things!?"**

**"Well that's easy to explain."** said the Witch Princess. She then pulls out a photograph from a pouch she has strapped to her waist, and shows it to Yuki.

**"Hey, that's my missing Photograph! You stole it!?"** yelled Yuki.

**"Yes I did. You see, after Choco was born, she started to grow rapidly in both mind and body. With that, she developed an incredible learning ability. Everything I showed her and told her, she believed it to be true. And in ten days, she grew ten years. During those ten days, I showed her your photograph so she could memorize your face. I recited everything you write in your diary, so she would know and mimic some of your interests and habits. And after she was ready, I erased all of her memories of myself, and sent her off to meet you.  
It's a perfect plan if I say so myself."**

**"Well what about all the back story she told me! The cherry blossom, and the picnics! All that never happened!"** yelled Yuki.

**"Oh that. Well you see, with very little time to educate Choco, I just read the back of one of Lumina's books. She took that as her life story, and told it to everyone else. But don't you think it's funny in a weird way? Lumina found the proof that Choco is not really your daughter some time ago, but she decided not to share it with you anyway."**

**"Hey, I didn't know that this was the case!"** snapped Lumina. **"And besides, Choco can't be a Homunculus! I read in a book that a living Homunculus cannot be created because they are always born without a soul! But Choco ran, played, and lived like a normal child. How did you accomplish something that was considered impossible?"**

**"I didn't find a way to do it. My father was a master alchemist, and he found a way to give a Homunculus life. . . Observe!"** She then pulls Choco's pendant out of her pouch and shows everyone.

**"What does that have to do with anything? It's just a pendant!"** said Yuki.

**"That's where you're wrong! Using the forbidden Human Alchemy, my father found a way how to open a gate to the afterlife, and 'borrow' a soul. The soul is then crystallized and bound to the Homunculus giving the false image of life. As long as the stone has enough energy, the Homunculus will continue to live. In other words, the stone on this pendant is not an ordinary rock, it's a Soul Stone!"**

**"So that's why she was dying earlier. She was running out of energy?"** asked Yuki.

**"That's right! But someone had to interfere, and prolonged the stone's life. A spirit that was haunting your farm Yuki. A guardian angel if you want to call it that. That spirit was your father!"**

**"My father's spirit? His spirit is in my farm?"**

**"Well, not anymore. His spirit is now inside this Soul Stone keeping it full of life. I created Choco to only have just a year of life. But now that your father's spirit lives in this stone, Choco now has the lifespan of an ordinary person."**

Yuki stands there in front of the Witch Princess frustrated and confused. Everything now makes sense, but still unbelievable. He now knows that Choco is not really his child, but in the same strange way, she still is. He gathers his courage and asks one last question, **"Why? Why did you have to do all of this? Why did you create a child for me? Why did you send her to me? Why did you just create a child I didn't ask for?"**

The Witch Princess sighs and confesses, **"You still don't get it Yuki. I guess I'm going to have to spell it out then. You see Yuki, I hate you! Ever since you came to the valley, you always pissed me off!! I hate you, your farm, and your stupid smile that cheers everyone up!! I did it to make you suffer!! I. . . I HATE YOU!!"**

At this point, there is a look of pain and trauma in the Witch Princess' eyes. Yuki can almost see years of torment, loneliness,and unhappiness all flowing out at one time. He almost feels sorry for her and wishes that he could do something to ease her suffering. But at this point, all Yuki wants is Choco back.

**"Okay, fine."** said Yuki almost trembling with fear. **"You win, you had your fun already. You caused me all sorts of trouble. I really don't know why you hate me so much to do this to me. But at this point, I don't care. Now please, just give Choco back already."**

**"No way!!"** yelled Witch Princess angrily. **"I created her so that you can become emotionally attached to her. And then you'll lose her in the end. Your father threw a wrench in my plans, but now it's time to finish the job!"**

**"What are you going to do to her!?"** demanded Yuki.

**"I'm going to send her back to the place where I got her from, the afterlife!!"**

Everyone gasps and starts to beg and plea that she stops her insane plan. But it's no use, Witch Princess places the Soul Stone on Choco's chest, and continues her chanting ignoring everyone's cries for her to stop. Nobody can help Choco because they know it's not safe to move any closer than they already are. If they go in, their soul will get sucked in along with Choco's.

But even though Yuki knows it's dangerous to try to save her, he doesn't care. Just before the Witch princess says the final incantation, Yuki jumps into the circle and grabs Choco. As soon as he touches her, painful bolts of energy grabs on to Yuki. He screams in agony as his soul is getting ripped from his body. He tries to move, but his body is paralyzed inside the circle.

**"Yuki, what the hell are you doing!"** yelled the Witch Princess shocked that Yuki jumped in, despite her earlier warning. **"Get out of there, or you're going to get killed!"**

Yuki looks up at Witch Princess with with agonizing pain in his eye. She is shocked to see that look once again. The same look as her own father while he was dying. He sacrificed his life to save her a long time ago, and Yuki is trying to do the same for Choco. Even though Yuki cannot save Choco's life, he decided to die trying.

Frustrated at Yuki's actions she tries to reason with him again. **"Didn't you hear me earlier!? She is not really your daughter!! She's a fake that I created with your hair! She is not a real person. Just leave her, and get out of there!"**

**"I won't. . . Do that!"** struggled Yuki. **"I know that. . . She isn't . . . My real daughter. . . So what? . . . I . . . Still love her. . . As if. . . She is my. . . Real daughter. . . So if you. . . Want to. . . End her life. . . Then you'll. . . Have to. . . Take mine too!!"**

Witch princess knows that this was never part of the plan. She only wants to make Yuki suffer, not end his life. She doesn't want to be a murderer. All she wants to do is undo the alchemy she created in the first place. She watches everyone else watch helplessly as they watch Yuki die before them. She knows that if he dies, everyone will blame her for his death.

Rather than allowing it to happen, she takes a random ingredient, and throws it in the cauldron of glowing liquid which causes a massive explosion that cancels the alchemy. The explosion throws Yuki and Witch Princess in the opposite side of the room. Yuki still has Choco in his arms protecting her to the best of his abilities. The Witch Princess hits her head against the wall, and is knocked out.

Yuki, being as tough as he is, gets up and starts to walk towards the Witch princess to give her a piece of his mind. Everyone else in the hut stands clear out of the way. As soon as he gets close to her, he steps on something unusual. He moves his foot off the object, and sees a Soul Stone. But he opens his hand, and sees that Choco's Soul Stone is in his hand. Plus the stone on the floor is a different color than Choco's. Choco's stone is amber colored, while the one on the floor is yellow.

As Yuki is staring at the stone on the floor, the Witch Princess wakes up heavily while rubbing the bump on her head. It doesn't take long before she sees the second Soul Stone on the floor in front of Yuki. She quickly grabs it, and shields it as if her life depends on that stone.

**"I see. . ."** said Yuki in a calm tone. After what he just saw, he feels that he may have finally understood why the Witch Princess has been suffering for so long. **"So, you're a Homunculus too. Am I right?"**

Without answering Yuki's question, she opens her hands, and stares at the stone. Her tears then begin to drip on the stone, she cannot hold her grief anymore. She then holds the stone tightly against her chest and admits, **"My mother and father only wanted to have a child. They didn't want to do anything wrong, but it was the only way. . ."**

Yuki kneels before the Witch princess and says, **"You really loved your parents, didn't you."**

She then looks up at Yuki and shows him the pendant while saying, **"They are right here, keeping me alive after all these years. They didn't do anything wrong, they just wanted to have a child just like everyone else. My father even gave his right hand, so he cannot practice alchemy anymore. But they still died for having to create me."**

**"I bet everyone made fun of you. Treated you poorly because you were different. Am I right?"** She nods at Yuki. Yuki then pats Choco on the head and tells Witch princess, **"I don't know the details of your past, but I can tell that it's full of pain, anger, and loneliness. I guess the way you express your pain is to make others feel even a small fraction of what you've felt."**

Yuki sighs and then continues, **"But things are different now. So many things have changed after so many years. People can now accept those who are different with open arms. Everyone who hurt you is no longer alive, we are in a whole new generation now.  
****And as far as Choco is concerned. . . Even if you don't want to accept it, but Choco is just as much your child as much as she is mine. She may be different, but I still want to raise her as if she is my own. And like our parents did for us, I will protect and care for her, because I am her father. Do you understand?"**

The Witch Princess looks up at Yuki once again, then at Choco. Not once did she ever see Choco as her daughter, mainly because she was never born to be a daughter. Only a tool she can use to torment Yuki for her own amusement. But hearing Yuki say that she is her mother makes her feel awkward. She knew that what she was doing is wrong, but she was about to end the life of a child that she brought into the earth herself. This makes herself feel ashamed. Anger and hatred for Yuki has clouded her judgment so much, that she could not see what she was doing the whole time.

**"I understand."** she uttered to Yuki.

Now that everything is resolved, everyone leaves the hut, and goes back to their homes. Yuki walks out as well, but before he leaves the hut, he tells Witch Princess, **"Listen, since you are her mother, I'll allow you to see her as much as you want. But don't do anything like this ever again."**

And so with that, Yuki leaves the hut carrying Choco like a newborn child. As Yuki walks away, Choco regains consciousness. From the corner of her eye, she sees the Witch Princess sitting inside the hut feeling depressed about what she almost did. Before she was completely out of sight, Choco says, **"Mommy?. . ."**

After everyone is gone from her hut, she starts to clean up. The explosion from the cauldron has knocked over many of her possessions on the floor, and there are lots of broken vials that needed to be swept. But as she cleans her home, she takes a moment pause. The words, **"I'm a mother?"** uttered from her lips as she stands there lost in thought.

To be continued.


	19. Chapter 19

Final Chapter

Winter 25, 2003

It is now Christmas day, and Choco's very first birthday. The whole village has decided to hold the party at Romana's mansion not only to celebrate the Christmas spirit, but to wish Choco a happy birthday as well. Everyone came carrying double the amounts of gifts as they normally brought every year.

On Choco's birthday cake, 11 candles are lit to represent Choco's age. After singing the usual "Happy Birthday" theme song, Choco makes a wish, and blows out the candles. Everyone then claps their hands, and yells happy birthday to her. Everyone then moves aside to open up a path towards a table with a mountainful of gifts just for Choco.

With her eyes glowing, and a smile from ear to ear, she runs over to the pile of gifts, and begins to tear up the white and red packages. Each box has some sort of chocolate treat inside. Even though Choco has received only chocolates, she still cheers happily for each and every gift.

As Choco continues to tear through the boxes, Muffy, Celia, Nami, Lumina, and Flora gather together and starts to gossiping with one another. "Hey, isn't Choco supposed to be one year old?" asked Muffy. "Why did Yuki decide to put eleven candles on the cake?"

"Actually, I'm curious to know if Choco will actually grow like normal people." commented Nami.

Yuki walks over to the girls and smile. He has overheard their conversation about Choco's age and growth. He also wondered the same thing after learning about her unique situation. But he answers, "Don't worry about it so much. Choco has grown several inches since she first arrived at my house, so she is growing up. And as far as her age. . . Well, it'll be easier to tell everyone else that she's eleven years old, rather than explaining how do I have a four feet tall one-year-old. Everything will work out fine, trust me."

Choco then runs to Yuki and asks, "Dad, what are you talking about?"

Yuki laughs and says, "Nothing, we're just having some grown-up talk." Yuki or anyone else in the village has not told Choco the truth about her unique birth, nor will they ever tell her. They all want her to grow up like any other normal person in the village, and allow her a chance to live a happy life.

Choco then jumps up and down yelling, "Dad! Dad! Do you remember the promise that you made me?"

"Promise?" asked the other girls.

Yuki pats Choco on the head and answers, "Of course I do. In celebration of our first birthday and Christmas together, I'll get you anything you ask for. So have you decided on what you want Choco?"

"More chocolate I bet!" commented Flora. Everyone laughs at the joke. Everyone also felt that since Choco's only interest is Chocolate, they all felt that Choco is going to ask for that from Yuki.

However, Choco shakes her head no and yells, "I want a little brother!"

Yuki's eyes pop wide open out of shock. The entire villa goes dead quiet after Choco makes her announcement as to what she wants as a birthday and Christmas gift. Choco looks around at everyone's shocked faces and says, "What's wrong? Why is everyone acting so weird?"

Yuki sweats nervously as he admits, "Um, Choco. . . I don't think that's something I can get you. Would you like something else?"

Choco then grabs Yuki's shirt, and tugs on it begging, "But dad! You promised! I could have anything I wanted! I want a little brother! I promise, I'll take good care of him, I'll share my chocolates with him, we can name him Vanilla, and I'll protect him from any wild dogs!"

"Choco, I can't do that." admitted Yuki. "Do you even have any idea where kids even come from? Where do you think I'm going to get a son from anyway?"

Suddenly, Yuki feels an unusual aura coming from behind him. He turns around to see the five girls staring a him. They then grin wickedly knowing that this may be the perfect opportunity to get Yuki to finally choose a bride.

Muffy decides to takes the first initiative. She runs to him, grabs his arm, and says, "Well, well Yuki. Looks like you need a son for Choco. If you want, I can give you the healthiest and best looking son you'll ever have."

"Hold on a second!" yelled Nami. "I think that Muffy will only have another girl. I, on the other hand, am confident that I'll have a baby boy."

Flora steps forward and says, "My family has a history of having the highest probability of bearing sons. I think I'll be the one to give birth to a son for you Yuki."

Celia then steps forward and says, "I'm pretty confident that I'll bear a baby boy for you. And I am also pretty confident that I'll be the best parent for both Choco and the baby boy."

Lumina finally says, "Actually, I read a book about tips and trick on how to guarantee a baby's gender. I feel that I have the best chance to have a son for you."

All the girls then stare at one another, and begins to argue with one another. They all yell and scream at one another saying how they can guarantee a son for Yuki, and how great of a parent they will make. The argument gives Yuki a massive headache, he knew that this would happen. Choco on the other hand is happy that they are "discussing" about Choco's little brother. She has no idea where babies come from, but she did hear that the others know of a way that they can have a baby brother for her.

After a few minutes, the doors of the villa slam open, inviting a strong Winter chill into the mansion. A loud voice screams, "That is enough!!" Everyone then turns towards the open doors, and sees the Witch Princess standing outside.

She stares at everyone with a mean glare for a moment, then focuses her attention to Yuki and Choco. She then walks towards them saying, "If anyone is going to bear a son for Yuki, it's going to be me!"

She then stands before Yuki, and lets out a warm smile. The first smile she has shown anyone for hundreds of years. She then says, "After all, I am Choco's mother, so it would make sense if I would have your son too. Heck, I'll bear as many kids as you want. And this time, we'll have normal kids. But in exchange, I want the blue feather."

Yuki leers at her awkwardly, and says, "You know, I never asked for a kid in the first place, why on earth do I want anymore from you. I hardly even know you."

"Don't be that way Yuki." said the Witch Princess. "After all, we are Choco's biological parents, so that means we should become a family, just for her sake."

Yuki tone changes as he says, "You call yourself a parent after what you almost did to her a couple of weeks ago."

"Oh come on Yuki! I made a mistake! I'm human too, we all make mistakes sometime in our lives!" whined the Witch Princess.

"Don't call yourself human when it's best convenient to you!" argued Yuki.

Lumina then claps her hands together stopping Yuki and Witch Princess from arguing any further. She then says, "I have an idea! Why don't we let Choco decide who gets to be the mother of Yuki's next child. After all, it is her gift."

"Stop making decisions for me!" yelled Yuki.

However all the girls agree with the idea. After almost a year living with Yuki, they all hope that Choco has learned to like at least one of Yuki's female friends. Without Yuki's consent, everyone crowds around Choco and asks, "So tell us Choco, who do you want as your mother?"

Choco looks around at her choices. There's the oldest, yet prettiest girl Muffy. The quiet and delicate Celia. The tomboy Nami. The charming and graceful Lumina. The hard working and experienced Flora. And her true biological mother Witch Princess. Each of them are very attractive, and have their own unique skills and traits to them.

Choco cannot make up her mind as to who will become her mother. She then looks at Yuki who is waving his arms around trying to tell her not to choose anyone. She then throws her arms up in the air an announces, "I want everyone to be my mamma!"

Muffy, Celia, Nami, Lumina, and Flora's face turns blue. They look at one another seeing that Choco requested that they all share Yuki's affection and marry him all at once. However, Witch Princess thinks for a moment and says, "You know, that doesn't sound like a bad idea."

"No, that's not a good idea!!" yelled the others, including Yuki.

"I refuse to share Yuki with anyone!" complained Muffy.

"Me neither" yelled the other four girls.

"I am not having six more kids!" complained Yuki.

Everyone goes quiet. The other villagers in the mansion does not get involved into the argument. After the moment of silence, all the girls look at one another, and realize that they haven't decided who is going to become Choco's mother. They then huddle once again, and begin to argue over who will become Choco's mother. Yuki tries to calm everyone down, but fails at his attempt. Choco just walks over to her giant collection of Chocolates, and begins eating while watching the adults argue.

10 years later

Choco has now grown into a full grown mature woman. Now more than ever, she resembles Yuki's mother. She has grown to have many interests including love for animals, respect for nature, musical talent, fishing, and athletics. But even though Choco has many talents, she still decides to become a farmer. Choco never did get to have a younger brother, but she is still happy to have her father. Choco still has never learned the truth of her birth, but as long as she doesn't ask, no one will tell her.

Yuki is now 33 years old. As much as everyone pressures him into marriage, he has never gotten married. He is very content with his only daughter Choco, and has no need of a wife or anymore children. Every time someone else asks him why did he decide to remain single, he answers, "Because even though it's just me and Choco running the farm, we are still a family. That's all that I need."

The other girls could no longer wait for Yuki, so they all got married to other men in the valley, and had children of their own. Muffy has finally noticed Griffin's feelings for her, and they got married. Marlin has confessed his feelings for Celia, and they became a couple soon afterwards. Nami fell for Gustafa's music, and they became husband and wife. Lumina married Rock from the Inn, and had a son named Toby. Flora left the valley with Carter, Yuki then received a letter from them saying that they've gotten married soon after they left.

The Witch Princess has decided to give up alchemy, and drop Witch from her name. She has also given up her cape and fur boots, and is now dressed up like a normal girl. She has even used her knowledge of alchemy, and took up a job as the village's pharmacist. When she is not working, she spends a lot of time in Yuki's farm spending time with both Yuki and Choco. Some people believe that Yuki and Princess might end up as a couple, but they are only friends.

Even though Choco loves her father very much, she still desires a romantic relationship like any other girl. After Hugh properly confessed his feelings to her, they have been dating since then. Yuki feels emotional watching Choco grow up into a fine woman, and one day will take over the farm in his place. It seems like almost yesterday that Choco has met Yuki over 10 years ago, but Yuki is glad that they are together.

As time continues to pass, Yuki continues to age, but Princess continues to remain young. It pains her that she will someday see Yuki die, and Choco die, and Choco's children die before her, and several more generations after that. However, she will be strong, not only for Choco's sake, but for the generations after her. She will eventually die herself, she has been alive for hundreds of years, but she is not immortal. But for as long as she continues living, she wants to be there for the future of her daughter, and her descendants.

The end.

Credits

This fanfic was based off Harvest Moon: DS. Juxapose4ever or Harvestmoon4ever does not assume ownership of copywritten names belonging to Natsume, Marucome, or Marvelous Interactive.

This fanfic was written for fans of Harvest Moon, or anyone who just loves to read. Thanks for reading.


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